Assessment of Biodiversity Richness and Carbon Sequestration Potential in Institutional Campus – A Case Study

Abstract

Within an increasingly sprawling city, it is almost far-fetched to identify a large patch of potential habitat for urban ecological conservation. In such cases, the institutional campuses become vital areas for such interventions, which can then be harmonized to realize the seemingly unreal idea of urban forest development. These institutional ecological patches remain a home to a number of species. Thus, it retains the urban biodiversity amidst the anthropogenic urban activities. The campus of Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, is one such institutional urban forest that sprawls across 143 acres of land, surrounded by the Thiruparankundram hills and the lake which support the species’ richness and their composition. This urban forest is considered for investigation in current study. The researchers followed the non-destructive sampling mapping technique and used a measuring tape to conduct the biodiversity assessment of trees and animal species. Further, the authenticity of the biological taxonomy was also validated using an open-source application, ‘Plant Net’. The results found that this urban forest harbours a total of 40 different species of trees, with Azadirachta indica being the dominant tree species, followed by Saraca asoca, the co-dominant. The total carbon sequestered by this urban forest was then calculated using the formula W= (AGB+BGB) *0.5*3.6663. The results suggest the implementation of appropriate management strategies by providing a diverse set of essential plant databases for the institutional campuses, which in turn can benefit the management of urban ecosystems. The study emphasizes the importance of diverse species in providing ecological services such as biodiversity conservation, improved air quality, and micro-climate regulation, thus escalating the institutional urban forests to contribute towards a harmonious urban ecological development.