Abstract
Understanding the contribution of forest ecosystems to regulating greenhouse gas emissions and maintaining the atmospheric CO2 balance requires the accurate quantification of above-ground biomass (AGB) at the individual tree species level. The main objective of this study was to develop species-specific allometric equations for the total AGB and various biomass components, including stem, branch, and foliage biomass in Khangai region, northern Mongolia. We destructively sampled a total of 183 trees of five species (22–74 trees per species), including Siberian stone pine (Pinus sibirica Du Tour.), Asian white birch (Betula platyphylla Sukacz.), Mongolian poplar (Populus suaveolens Fisch.), Siberian spruce (Picea obovata Ldb.), and Siberian larch (Larix sibirica Ldb.), across this region. The results showed that for the five species, the average biomass proportion for the stems was 75%, followed by branches at 20% and foliage at 5%. The species-specific component and total AGB models for the Khangai region were developed using tree diameter at breast height (D) and D² and tree height (H) combined ( D 2 H ); and both D and H were used as independent variables. The best allometric model was lnŶ = lna + b × lnD + c × lnH for the various components and total AGB of B. platyphylla and L. sibirica, for the stems and total AGB of P. suaveolens, and for the stem and branch biomass of P. obovata. The equation lnŶ = lna + b × ln( D 2 × H ) was best for the various components and total AGB of P. sibirica, for the branch and foliage biomass of P. suaveolens, and for AGB of P. obovata. The equation lnŶ = lna + b × ln(D) was best only for the foliage biomass of P. obovata. Our results highlight that developing species-specific tree AGB models is very important for accurately estimating the biomass in the Khangai forest region of Mongolia. Our biomass models will be used at the tree level inventories with sample plots in the Khangai forest region.
Highlights
Forest ecosystems play a dual role in global and regional carbon (C) cycles due to their capacity for C storage and high productivity [1,2]
The total above-ground biomass (AGB) was highest in P. suaveolens (263 ± 43 kg), followed by L. sibirica (256 ± 35 kg), P. obovata (242 ± 49 kg), P. sibirica (223 ± 43 kg) and B. platyphylla (134 ± 29 kg) in the Khangai region (Table 2)
For P. sibirica, the relative contribution of stem biomass to the total AGB increased from 66% for the small-diameter class (
Summary
Forest ecosystems play a dual role in global and regional carbon (C) cycles due to their capacity for C storage and high productivity [1,2]. The estimation of forest ecosystem biomass, including the biomass of tree components, such as stems, branches, foliage, and roots, on local, regional and national scales is essential for determining C storage and forest productivity [9,10]. The biomass and carbon stock changes estimated by the allometric equations are important for assessing the mitigation effect of forests on global climate change, and predicting the potential for C sequestration and emission reduction activities such as tree planting, protecting forests from wildfire and insect or disease outbreak, etc. In the context of climate change and UN-REDD+ activities, biomass productivity and the potential for carbon sequestration have received much more attention than hitherto [8]
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