Changes in annual CO2 fluxes estimated from inventory data in South Korea

Using a slightly modified IPCC method, we examined changes in annual fluxes of CO_2and contributions of energy consumption, limestone use, waste combustion, land-use change, and forest growth to the fluxes in South Korea from 1990 to 1997. Our method required less data and resulted in a larger estimate of CO_2 released by industrial processes, comparing with the originalIPCC guideline. However, net CO_2 emission is not substantially different from the estimates of IPCC and modified methods. Net CO_2 emission is intimately related to GDP as Korean economyhas heavily relied on energy consumption and industrial activities, which are major sources of CO_2.Total efflux of CO_2 was estimated to be 63.6 Tg C/a in 1990 and amounted to 112.9 Tg C/a in 1997. Land-use change contributed to annual budget of CO_2 in a relatively small portion. Carbon dioxide was sequestered by forest biomass at the rate of 6.5 Tg C/a in 1990 and 8.5 Tg C/a in 1997. Al-though CO_2 storage in the forests increased, the sink effect was overwhelmed by extensive energy consumption, suggesting that energy-saving strategies will be more effective in reducing CO_2 emission in Korea than any other practices. It is presumed that plant uptake of CO_2 is underesti-mated as carbon contained in plant detritus and belowground living biomass were not fully consid-ered. Furthermore, the soil organic carbon stored in forest decomposes in various ways in rugged mountains depending on their conditions, such as slope, aspect and elevation, which could havean effect on decomposition rate and carbon stores in soils. Thus, carbon sequestration of forests deserves further attention.     

Changes in annual CO2 fluxes estimated from inventory data in South Korea

Using a slightly modified IPCC method, we examined changes in annual fluxes of CO₂ and contributions of energy consumption, limestone use, waste combustion, land-use change, and forest growth to the fluxes in South Korea from 1990 to 1997. Our method required less data and resulted in a larger estimate of CO₂ released by industrial processes, comparing with the original IPCC guideline. However, net CO₂ emission is not substantially different from the estimates of IPCC and modified methods. Net CO₂ emission is intimately related to GDP as Korean economy has heavily relied on energy consumption and industrial activities, which are major sources of CO₂. Total efflux of CO₂ was estimated to be 63.6 Tg C/a in 1990 and amounted to 112.9 Tg C/a in 1997. Land-use change contributed to annual budget of CO₂ in a relatively small portion. Carbon dioxide was sequestered by forest biomass at the rate of 6.5 Tg C/a in 1990 and 8.5 Tg C/a in 1997. Although CO₂ storage in the forests increased, the sink effect was overwhelmed by extensive energy consumption, suggesting that energy-saving strategies will be more effective in reducing CO₂ emission in Korea than any other practices. It is presumed that plant uptake of CO₂ is underestimated as carbon contained in plant detritus and belowground living biomass were not fully considered. Furthermore, the soil organic carbon stored in forest decomposes in various ways in rugged mountains depending on their conditions, such as slope, aspect and elevation, which could have an effect on decomposition rate and carbon stores in soils. Thus, carbon sequestration of forests deserves further attention.     

1950—2008年江西省森林火灾的碳损失估算

1950—2008年间江西省年均发生森林火灾762次、年均过火面积1.578×10.4 hm².本文利用江西省森林火灾统计数据,结合气象、森林分布和历次森林清查数据,分析了该省林火的特征,估算历年的林火碳释放量和碳转移量.结果表明： 1950—2008年江西省森林火灾导致的森林生物量总损失约61.155 Tg,活生物量碳库损失约30.993 Tg C,占全省植被碳库的15.92%.20世纪70年代以前林火生物量碳损失率约占1950—2008年生物量总碳损失的74.3%;90年代以后,年均林火生物量碳损失小于0.097 Tg C.森林火灾释放的CO₂、CH₄和CO气体分别为5.408 Tg、0.047 Tg和0.486 Tg,有22.436 Tg C活生物量碳进入土壤碳库.2008年初雨雪冰冻灾害引发的高频率次生林火灾害导致森林活生物量碳损失(0.463 Tg C)是前5年平均值(0.181 Tg C)的2.56倍.     

1980—1999年大兴安岭灌木、草本和地被物林火碳释放估算

应用排放因子法,对大兴安岭林区1980-1999年间主要森林类型中灌木、草本和地被物因森林火灾释放的碳量及主要含碳温室气体量进行了估算．结果表明：不同森林类型灌木、草本和地被物的排放因子不同,以杜香-兴安落叶松林的灌木、草本和地被物层CO2排放因子最大,为93．08％,樟子松林最小,为82．56％;樟子松林CO和CxHy排放因子最大,分别为10．25％和0．84％,杜香-兴安落叶松林最小,分别为6．55％和0．30％．结合灌木、草本和地被物层生物量和碳储量数据,得出20年间大兴安岭典型森林类型灌木、草本和地被物层因森林火灾释放的总碳量为6．56Tg,年平均0．33Tg,约占全国森林火灾碳释放量的11．55％～16．30％;直接释放的含碳温室气体22．03Tg,其中CO2的释放量占总释放量的85．20％,CO占总释放量的14．21％,CxHy占总释放量的0．59％．     

林业活动对区域森林生物量碳源汇格局的影响——以南平市为例

林业活动在一定程度上影响着区域森林的时空分布格局和碳汇/源功能。明确并量化林业活动对区域森林碳汇功能的影响与空间分布,对于区域森林碳汇提升和实现区域"碳中和"具有重要意义。以国家级生态示范区福建省南平市为例,以多期森林资源规划调查数据为基础,采用IPCC材积源-生物量法,基于土地利用类型的时空变化和林业活动类型划分,分类分析了南平市森林碳源和碳汇的空间分布特征,并量化了不同林业活动（一直保持为森林、人工造林、自然恢复、毁林和森林退化）对森林碳汇和碳源的影响。研究结果表明,2013年南平市森林碳储量总量为80.84Tg C,2020年森林碳储量总量增加至89.87Tg C,年均变化量为1.29Tg C/a （或4.73Tg CO₂/a）。平均胸径、公顷蓄积等林分因子是当前主要影响森林碳储量的因素。在其他影响因素中,暗红壤分布区的森林生物质碳密度较高而在水稻土分布区则较低;此外,高海拔、中等立地质量土地上的森林碳密度较高。对于不同林业活动,2013-2020年南平市一直保持为森林（森林经营）、自然恢复增加的天然林和人工造林分别使森林生物质碳储量增加了0.34Tg C/a、0.85Tg C/a和1.05Tg C/a,同期因毁林和森林退化导致森林生物质碳储量分别减少0.75Tg C/a和0.42Tg C/a,森林生物质碳储量净增加1.09Tg C/a （或3.98Tg CO₂/a）,明显低于2013-2020森林碳储量净增量。对于土地利用变化较剧烈的区域,本文基于土地利用变化且区分林业活动路径的方法,能更准确地反映森林的碳汇和碳源及时空格局。2013-2020年间南平市一直保持为森林的生物质碳密度仅增长0.22Mg C hm^-2 a^-1,成熟林、过熟林面积占比增加使森林平均生长速率下降可能是主要原因。而同期通过自然恢复和人工造林使森林生物质碳密度分别增长4.00Mg C hm^-2 a^-1和4.10Mg C hm^-2 a^-1。优化龄组结构提升森林生长量、减少毁林和防止森林退化可以作为该区域未来森林增汇减排的有效举措。     

Effects of Management on Carbon Sequestration in Forest Biomass in Southeast Alaska

The Tongass National Forest (Tongass) is the largest national forest and largest area of old-growth forest in the United States. Spatial geographic information system data for the Tongass were combined with forest inventory data to estimate and map total carbon stock in the Tongass; the result was 2.8 ± 0.5 Pg C, or 8% of the total carbon in the forests of the conterminous USA and 0.25% of the carbon in global forest vegetation and soils. Cumulative net carbon loss from the Tongass due to management of the forest for the period 1900–95 was estimated at 6.4–17.2 Tg C. Using our spatially explicit data for carbon stock and net flux, we modeled the potential effect of five management regimes on future net carbon flux. Estimates of net carbon flux were sensitive to projections of the rate of carbon accumulation in second-growth forests and to the amount of carbon left in standing biomass after harvest. Projections of net carbon flux in the Tongass range from 0.33 Tg C annual sequestration to 2.3 Tg C annual emission for the period 1995–2095. For the period 1995–2195, net flux estimates range from 0.19 Tg C annual sequestration to 1.6 Tg C annual emission. If all timber harvesting in the Tongass were halted from 1995 to 2095, the economic value of the net carbon sequestered during the 100-year hiatus, assuming $20/Mg C, would be $4 to $7 million/y (1995 US dollars). If a prohibition on logging were extended to 2195, the annual economic value of the carbon sequestered would be largely unaffected ($3 to $6 million/y). The potential annual economic value of carbon sequestration with management maximizing carbon storage in the Tongass is comparable to revenue from annual timber sales historically authorized for the forest.     

区域碳排放量的计算——以广东省为例

采用IPCC 2006年版碳排放计算公式、经济-碳排放的动力学模型和水泥碳排放模型,提出了区域碳排量计算框架和研究方法,并以广东省为例,基于广东省社会经济统计数据、能源消费数据、水泥产量数据和森林碳汇数据,预测了广东省2008-2050年能源消费碳排放量、水泥消费量和碳排放量、森林碳汇值.结果表明：2008-2050年,广东省水泥产量及其生产过程中的碳排放量基本稳定,年碳排放量在10～15 Mt C;广东省能源消费碳排放和总的碳排放趋势均呈倒U型曲线,其峰值年份分别在2035和2036年;2008-2050年,广东省碳排放强度将持续下降,森林碳汇量呈波动式下降趋势.本文提出的区域碳排放计算框架在广东省具有可行性和合理性.     

潭江流域森林碳蓄积与能源燃烧碳释放

研究了潭江流域典型区中小尺度森林碳库与人类活动化石能源碳释放.结果表明,自1990年 以来,森林一直起着碳汇的作用,并且随着经济发展与时间延长,汇的作用得到加强,1990 年森林净吸收碳量为1.0579×10⁷ t,到2002年森林净吸收碳量增至1.28061×10⁷ t,年平均净吸收碳量为1.856×10⁵ t.化石能源的碳释放与经济增长呈正相关,1990年的化石能源碳排放为9.508×10⁵ t,2002年为1.8562×10⁶ t,年平均增加量7.0×10⁴ t,2003年达到2.1968×10⁶ t,比2002年增加3.406×10⁵ t.2002年,潭江流域万元GDP能耗为2.21 t标煤,高于珠江三角洲平均水平.如果提高能源利用效率,使能耗降低至平均水平,则可削减3.360×10⁵ t碳排放,大于2002年流域森林净吸收的碳量. 从流域净吸收与净增排放的碳量来看,流域碳平衡与人类活动的关系有待进一步研究.     

四川森林植被碳储量的时空变化

利用平均木法建立森林生物量与蓄积量模型,结合四川森林资源二类调查数据,研究了森林碳密度和碳储量的时空变化.结果表明 四川森林碳储量从1974年的300.02 Tg增加到2004年的469.96 Tg,年均增长率1.51%,表明其是CO2的"汇".由于人工林面积的增加,森林植被的平均碳密度从49.91 Mg·hm-2减少到37.39 Mg·hm-2.四川森林碳储量存在空间差异性,表现为川西北高山峡谷区＞川西南山区＞盆周低山区＞盆地丘陵区＞川西平原区.森林碳密度由东南向西北呈现逐渐增加趋势,即盆地丘陵区＜川西平原区＜川西南山区＜盆周低山区＜川西北高山峡谷区.通过分区森林经营与管理将提高四川森林的碳吸存能力.     

甘肃省森林碳储量现状与固碳速率

针对森林碳平衡再评估的重要性和区域尺度森林生态系统碳库量化分配的不确定性, 该研究依据全国森林资源连续清查结果中甘肃省各森林类型分布的面积与蓄积比重以及林龄和起源等要素, 在甘肃省布设212个样地, 经野外调查与采样、室内分析, 并对典型样地信息按照面积权重进行尺度扩展, 估算了甘肃省森林生态系统碳储量及其分布特征。结果表明: 甘肃省森林生态系统总碳储量为612.43 Tg C, 其中植被生物量碳为179.04 Tg C, 土壤碳为433.39 Tg C。天然林是甘肃省碳储量的主要贡献者, 其值为501.42 Tg C, 是人工林的4.52倍。天然林和人工林的植被碳密度均表现为随林龄的增加而增加的趋势, 同一龄组天然林植被碳密度高于人工林。天然林土壤碳密度从幼龄林到过熟林逐渐增加, 但人工林土壤碳密度最大值主要为近熟林。全省森林植被碳密度均值为72.43 Mg C·hm^-2, 天然林和人工林分别为90.52和33.79 Mg C·hm^-2。基于森林清查资料和标准样地实测数据, 估算出全省天然林和人工林在1996年的植被碳储量为132.47和12.81 Tg C, 2011年分别为152.41和26.63 Tg C, 平均固碳速率分别为1.33和0.92 Tg C·a^-1。甘肃省幼、中龄林面积比重较大, 占全省的62.28%, 根据碳密度随林龄的动态变化特征, 预测这些低龄林将发挥巨大的碳汇潜力。     

Current stocks and rate of sequestration of forest carbon in Gansu Province,China

Aims
Carbon sequestration is the basic function and most primary service of forest ecosystems, and plays a vital role in mitigating the global climate change. However, carbon storage and allocation in forest ecosystems have been less studied at regional scales than at forest stand levels, and the results are subject to uncertainty due to inconsistent methodologies. In this study we aim to obtain relatively accurate estimates of forest carbon stocks and sequestration rate at a provincial scale (regional) based on plot surveys of plants and soils.
Methods
In consideration of the areas and distributions of major forest types, 212 sampling plots, covering different age classes and origins (natural forests vs. planted forests), were surveyed in Gansu Province in northern China. Field investigations were conducted for vegetation layers (trees, shrubs, herbs and litter), soil profiles, and sampling of both plant materials and soils for laboratory analyses. Regional carbon stocks were calculated by up-scaling the carbon densities of all forest types with their corresponding areas. Carbon sequestration rate was estimated by referencing the reports of national forest inventory data for different periods.
Important findings Forest carbon stocks at the provincial scale were estimated at 612.43 Tg C, including 179.04 Tg C in biomass and 433.39 Tg C in soil organic materials. Specifically, natural forests stored 501.42 Tg C, approximately 4.52 times than that of the plantations. Biomass carbon density in both natural forests and plantations showed an increasing trend with stand age classes, and was greater in natural forests than in plantations within the same age classes. Soil carbon density also increased with stand age classes in natural forests, but the highest value occurred at the pre-mature stage in plantations. The weighted average of regional biomass carbon density was at 72.43 Mg C·hm^-2, with the average value of 90.52 Mg C·hm^-2 in natural forests and 33.79 Mg C·hm^-2 in plantations, respectively. In 1996, vegetation stored 132.47 Tg C in natural forests and 12.81 Tg C in plantations, respectively, and the values increased to 152.41 and 26.63 Tg C in 2011, with the mean carbon sequestration rates of 1.33 and 0.92 Tg C·a^-1. Given that young and middle-aged forests account for a large proportion (62.28%) of the total forest areas, the region is expected to have substantial potential of carbon sequestration.     

4种温带森林非生长季土壤二氧化碳、甲烷和氧化亚氮通量

中高纬度森林土壤在漫长的非生长季中对重要温室气体——二氧化碳(CO2)、甲烷(CH4)和氧化亚氮(N2O)的释放或吸收在碳氮年收支中作用很大,但目前研究甚少。采用静态暗箱-气相色谱法,比较研究东北东部4种典型温带森林土壤表面CO2、CH4和N2O通量在非生长季中的时间动态及其影响因子。结果表明:4种森林土壤在非生长季中整体上均表现为CO2源、N2O源和CH4汇的功能。红松林、落叶松林、蒙古栎林、硬阔叶林的非生长季平均土壤表面CO2通量分别为(65.5±8.1)mgm-2h-1(平均值±标准差)、(70.5±10.2)mgm-2h-1、(77.1±8.0)mgm-2h-1、(80.5±23.5)mgm-2h-1;CH4通量分别为(-17.2±4.6)μgm-2h-1、(-15.4±4.2)μgm-2h-1、(-31.5±4.5)μgm-2h-1、(-23.6±4.1)μgm-2h-1;N2O通量分别为(19.3±5.1)μgm-2h-1、(11.5±2.5)μgm-2h-1、(16.4±4.0)μgm-2h-1、(14.4±5.4)μgm-2h-1;其中非生长季土壤表面CO2总排放量分别为143.4gm-2、162.8gm-2、189.9gm-2、252.7gm-2,分别占其年通量的7.3%、10.6%、8.4%和8.5%。所有林型非生长季土壤表面CO2通量在春季土壤解冻前均维持在较低水平;在解冻进程中随温度升高而增大。土壤表面CO2通量与5cm深土壤温度(T5)呈极显著的指数函数关系。在隆冬时节出现CH4净释放现象,但释放强度及其出现时间因林型而异,其中以红松林的释放强度较大,高达43.6μgm-2h-1。土壤表面CH4通量与T5呈显著的负相关。土壤表面N2O通量的时间动态格局在林型间的分异较大,但在春季土壤解冻阶段均释放出N2O,而释放峰值和出现时间因林型而异。土壤表面N2O通量与0—10cm深土壤含水量呈显著的正相关(红松林除外)。研究展示了不同温带森林类型的土壤水热条件对其非生长季土壤CO2、CH4和N2O通量的重要影响,但这3种温室气体的林型间分异的生物学机理尚需进一步研究。     

Spatio-temporal changes in biomass carbon sinks in China’s forests from 1977 to 2008

Forests play a leading role in regional and global carbon (C) cycles. Detailed assessment of the temporal and spatial changes in C sinks/sources of China’s forests is critical to the estimation of the national C budget and can help to constitute sustainable forest management policies for climate change. In this study, we explored the spatio-temporal changes in forest biomass C stocks in China between 1977 and 2008, using six periods of the national forest inventory data. According to the definition of the forest inventory, China’s forest was categorized into three groups: forest stand, economic forest, and bamboo forest. We estimated forest biomass C stocks for each inventory period by using continuous biomass expansion factor (BEF) method for forest stands, and the mean biomass density method for economic and bamboo forests. As a result, China’s forests have accumulated biomass C (i.e., biomass C sink) of 1896 Tg (1 Tg=10¹² g) during the study period, with 1710, 108 and 78 Tg C in forest stands, and economic and bamboo forests, respectively. Annual forest biomass C sink was 70.2 Tg C a^?1, offsetting 7.8% of the contemporary fossil CO₂ emissions in the country. The results also showed that planted forests have functioned as a persistent C sink, sequestrating 818 Tg C and accounting for 47.8% of total C sink in forest stands, and that the old-, mid- and young-aged forests have sequestrated 930, 391 and 388 Tg C from 1977 to 2008. Our results suggest that China’s forests have a big potential as biomass C sink in the future because of its large area of planted forests with young-aged growth and low C density.     

中国森林植被碳库的动态变化及其意义

利用1949年至1998年间7次森林资源清查资料,结合使用森林生物量实测资料,采用改良的生物量换算因子法,推算了中国50年来森林碳库和平均碳密度的变化,分析了中国森林植被的CO2源汇功能,结果表明,70年代中期以前,主要由于森林砍伐等人为作用,中国森林碳库和碳密度都是减少的,碳储量减少了0．62PgC（Pg＝10^15g),年均减少约0．024PgC。之后,呈增加趋势。在最近的20多年中,森林碳库由70年代末期的4．38PgC增加到1998年的4．75PgC,共增加0．37PgC,年平均增加0．022PgC。这种增加主要由人工造林增加所致。20多年来,由于人工林增加导致碳汇增加0．45PgC,年平均增加吸收0．021PgC／a。人工林的平均碳密度也显增加,共增加了约一倍。这除了人工成林增多外,气温上升和CO2浓度施肥也可能是促进森林生长的重要因子。     

江西中南部红壤丘陵区主要造林树种碳固定估算

本文根据江西第6次森林清查小班数据,通过基于实地调查数据拟合的森林植被生物量与蓄积量的关系,估算了2003年江西中南部红壤丘陵区泰和县和兴国县主要人工造林树种马尾松、湿地松、杉木林的生物量和碳储量,并采用空间替代时间的方法,利用Logistic方程拟合了三个树种林龄与碳密度的曲线关系,估算了研究区1985-2002年的森林植被生物量和碳储量,分析了时空动态特征。结果表明：(1) 2003年研究区主要造林树种林分面积31.04?10⁴hm²,总生物量22.20Tg,总碳储量13.07TgC,平均碳密度42.36tC/hm²。(2) 1985、1994、2003年三个树种植被碳储量分别为4.91、11.41和13.07TgC,年均固碳量0.45 TgC.a^-1。(3) 海拔位于700-900m之间的树种平均碳密度最大,坡度位于25～35?之间的树种平均碳密度最大。森林植被碳密度总体上呈现随海拔高度的增加而增加,随坡度的增大而增大的分布。人工造林工程使江西中南部红壤丘陵区森林植被碳储量明显增加,合理的森林经营管理可以提高森林生态系统的固碳能力。     

辽宁中部城镇密集区土地利用变化的碳排放及低碳调控对策

土地利用变化引起的碳排放对全球气候变化有重要影响,调整区域的土地利用方式对适应全球气候变化具有重要的科学意义.本研究利用辽宁省碳排放/吸收参数,估算了辽宁中部城镇密集区土地利用变化的碳排放量.结果表明： 1997—2010年,碳排放量为308.51 Tg C,碳吸收量为11.64 Tg C,碳吸收量可抵消
3.8%的碳排放量.土地利用变化的净碳排放为296.87 Tg C,其中,保持用地类型不变的土地上净碳排放量是182.24 Tg C,对总排放量的贡献为61.4%;发生用地类型转换的土地上净碳排放量是114.63 Tg C,对总碳排放量的贡献为38.6%.通过量化土地利用变化和碳排放之间的映射关系可知,1997—2004年,保持建设用地不变（40.9%）和农田转为建设用地（40.6%）类型对碳源的贡献最大,农田转林地（38.6%）和保持林地不变（37.5%）类型对碳汇的贡献最大;2004—2010年,土地利用类型对碳源和碳汇的贡献类型与前一时段相同,但保持建设用地类型对碳源的贡献提高到80.6%,保持林地类型对碳汇的贡献提高到71.7%.基于不同景观变化类型的碳排放强度,我们从两方面提出低碳土地利用的调控对策：从碳减排方面,严格控制土地利用向建设用地转变,提高建设用地能源利用效率,避免对林地和水域过度开发利用;从碳增汇方面,增加森林覆盖率,实施农田、草地还林,加强对森林、水域的保护,调整农用地内部结构和科学实施农田管理.     

基于森林清查资料的河南省森林植被碳储量动态变化

利用1994—1998年、1999—2003年、2004—2008年、2009—2013年河南省4期森林资源清查数据,运用生物量转换因子连续函数法和平均生物量法,估算了1998—2013年河南省森林植被的碳储量和碳密度变化。研究结果表明,河南省森林植被碳储量由1998年的45.57 Tg增加到2013年的107.98 Tg,年均碳汇量为4.16 Tg/a。乔木林碳储量和碳密度分别由1998年的33.54 Tg和22.39 Mg/hm~2增加到2013年的97.11 Tg和31.80 Mg/hm~2。乔木林碳储量在所有植被类型中占主体,4个森林清查时期乔木林碳储量占森林植被总碳储量的比例分别为73.60%、79.22%、85.63%和89.93%。2013年森林清查时,乔木林中杨树和栎类碳储量最大,分别占总碳储量的37.61%和25.22%,各龄组乔木林碳密度大小顺序依次为成熟林近熟林中龄林过熟林幼龄林。阔叶林面积、碳储量、碳密度均高于针叶林,阔叶林是河南省森林碳汇的主要贡献者。人工林面积、碳储量、碳密度增加幅度都要高于天然林,人工林碳储量由1998年的9.62 Tg增加到2013年的55.67 Tg,占乔木林碳储量总增量的77.15%,人工林碳密度由1998年的17.86 Mg/hm~2提高到2013年的32.01 Mg/hm~2,人工林在河南省森林碳汇中逐步发挥重要的作用,逐渐成为河南省森林碳汇的主体,随着人工林生长为具有较高碳密度的成熟林,河南省乔木林将具有较大的碳汇潜力。     

MODIS Based Estimation of Forest Aboveground Biomass in China

Accurate estimation of forest biomass C stock is essential to understand carbon cycles. However, current estimates of Chinese forest biomass are mostly based on inventory-based timber volumes and empirical conversion factors at the provincial scale, which could introduce large uncertainties in forest biomass estimation. Here we provide a data-driven estimate of Chinese forest aboveground biomass from 2001 to 2013 at a spatial resolution of 1 km by integrating a recently reviewed plot-level ground-measured forest aboveground biomass database with geospatial information from 1-km Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) dataset in a machine learning algorithm (the model tree ensemble, MTE). We show that Chinese forest aboveground biomass is 8.56 Pg C, which is mainly contributed by evergreen needle-leaf forests and deciduous broadleaf forests. The mean forest aboveground biomass density is 56.1 Mg C ha⁻¹, with high values observed in temperate humid regions. The responses of forest aboveground biomass density to mean annual temperature are closely tied to water conditions; that is, negative responses dominate regions with mean annual precipitation less than 1300 mm y⁻¹ and positive responses prevail in regions with mean annual precipitation higher than 2800 mm y⁻¹. During the 2000s, the forests in China sequestered C by 61.9 Tg C y⁻¹, and this C sink is mainly distributed in north China and may be attributed to warming climate, rising CO₂ concentration, N deposition, and growth of young forests.     

Forest biomass carbon sinks in East Asia,with special reference to the relative contributions of forest expansion and forest growth

Forests play an important role in regional and global carbon (C) cycles. With extensive afforestation and reforestation efforts over the last several decades, forests in East Asia have largely expanded, but the dynamics of their C stocks have not been fully assessed. We estimated biomass C stocks of the forests in all five East Asian countries (China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, and Mongolia) between the 1970s and the 2000s, using the biomass expansion factor method and forest inventory data. Forest area and biomass C density in the whole region increased from 179.78 × 10⁶ ha and 38.6 Mg C ha^?1 in the 1970s to 196.65 × 10⁶ ha and 45.5 Mg C ha^?1 in the 2000s, respectively. The C stock increased from 6.9 Pg C to 8.9 Pg C, with an averaged sequestration rate of 66.9 Tg C yr^?1. Among the five countries, China and Japan were two major contributors to the total region's forest C sink, with respective contributions of 71.1% and 32.9%. In China, the areal expansion of forest land was a larger contributor to C sinks than increased biomass density for all forests (60.0% vs. 40.0%) and for planted forests (58.1% vs. 41.9%), while the latter contributed more than the former for natural forests (87.0% vs. 13.0%). In Japan, increased biomass density dominated the C sink for all (101.5%), planted (91.1%), and natural (123.8%) forests. Forests in South Korea also acted as a C sink, contributing 9.4% of the total region's sink because of increased forest growth (98.6%). Compared to these countries, the reduction in forest land in both North Korea and Mongolia caused a C loss at an average rate of 9.0 Tg C yr^?1, equal to 13.4% of the total region's C sink. Over the last four decades, the biomass C sequestration by East Asia's forests offset 5.8% of its contemporary fossil‐fuel CO₂ emissions.     

An initial intercomparison of micrometeorological and ecological inventory estimates of carbon exchange in a mid-latitude deciduous forest

The role of mid‐latitude forests in the sequestration of carbon (C) is of interest to an increasing number of scientists and policy‐makers alike. Net CO₂ exchange can be estimated on an annual basis, using eddy‐covariance techniques or from ecological inventories of C fluxes to and from a forest. Here we present an intercomparison of annual estimates of C exchange in a mixed hardwood forest in the Morgan‐Monroe State Forest, Indiana, USA for two years, 1998 and 1999. Based on eddy‐covariance measurements made at 1.8 times canopy height from a tower, C uptake by the forest was 237 and 287 g C m^?2 y^?1 for 1998 and 1999, respectively. For the same time period, biometric and ecophysiological measures and modelled estimates of all significant carbon fluxes within deciduous forests were made, including: change in living biomass, aboveground and belowground detritus production, foliage consumption, and forest floor and soil respiration. Using this ecological inventory method for these same two time periods, C uptake was estimated to be 271 and 377 g C m^?2 y^?1, which are 14.3% and 31.4% larger, respectively, than the tower‐based values. The relative change between this method's annual estimates is consistent with that of the eddy‐covariance based values. Our results indicate that the difference in annual C exchange rates was due to reduced heterotrophic soil respiration in 1999.