Baseline and projected future carbon storage and carbon fluxes in ecosystems of Hawai‘i

Abstract

Hawaii is unique among the United States because of its tropical climate, geographic isolation, high rates of species endemism and discontinuous land mass. The year-round warm, wet climate on the windward sides of islands and the high fertility of relatively young volcanically derived soils are ideal conditions for carbon input, storage and carbon sequestration in ecosystems of the main Hawaiian Islands. A number of plot- and stand-level studies examining the physical and biological controls over tropical ecosystem carbon storage and flux provide evidence of the high carbon sequestration capacity of Hawaiian terrestrial ecosystems with a focus on soils, live biomass and plant productivity. However, there have been relatively few regional to island-wide studies examining the biotic and environmental controls on aboveground carbon density, and no island- to statewide estimates of carbon fluxes and net carbon balance for ecosystems of the Hawaiian Islands. The goal of this report is to provide robust baseline estimates of carbon storage and flux across the Hawaiian Islands based on the best available data, and to then use this baseline data as input to predict how carbon cycling and storage may respond to projected future changes in climate, land use, land cover and disturbance.