CARBON STOCK GROWTH IN A SECONDARY ATLANTIC FOREST

Paulo Henrique Villanova,Carlos Moreira Miquelino Eleto Torres,Laércio Antônio Gonçalves Jacovine,Liniker Fernandes Da Silva,Samuel José Silva Soares Da Rocha,Bruno Leão Said Schettini,Carlos Pedro Boechat Soares

doi:10.1590/1806-90882019000400002

Paulo Henrique Villanova, Carlos Moreira Miquelino Eleto Torres + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1806-90882019000400002

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Abstract

ABSTRACT The secondary Atlantic forests play an important role in the context of climate change, acting as a carbon sink for the atmosphere. However, these forests can become a carbon source in case of increased tree mortality. Knowing this change is possible through continuous forest inventories that provide information on the dynamics of tree growth. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the carbon growth dynamics of a Seasonal Semideciduous Forest fragment, with 44.11 ha, located in the Parque Tecnológico de Viçosa - MG. The forest inventories were carried out in twenty plots of 10 m x 50 m, in the years of 2010 and 2015, where all stems with dbh ≥ 5 cm were measured, botanically identified and classified in ecological groups. The stem volume was obtained through volumetric equation. Biomass and carbon stock were quantified for compartments located above the ground (stem, branches and leaves) and below ground (roots). The dynamics of carbon growth were evaluated by Gross Increment (GI) and Periodic Annual Increment in carbon of the species (PAI). The GI was 12.72 MgC ha-1, including the carbon from the stems that were recruited and died during the monitoring period. The carbon stock increased 10.01 MgC ha-1, resulting in an PAI of 2.00 MgC ha-1 year-1. Thus, it is concluded that the forest fragment present positive carbon stock growth due to successional progression, ratifying the importance of secondary forest of the Atlantic forest in the mitigation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Highlights

The Atlantic Forest has one of the richest biodiversities in the world, hosting a range of animal and plant species (Joly et al, 2014; Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica and INPE, 2018)
This study aimed to evaluate the dynamics of carbon growth of a secondary forest fragment of the Atlantic Forest
The biomass and the carbon stock had an increase of 19.51 Mg ha-1 and 10.01 MgC ha-1, respectively, during the assessed monitored period (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

The Atlantic Forest has one of the richest biodiversities in the world, hosting a range of animal and plant species (Joly et al, 2014; Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica and INPE, 2018). The increase of natural disturbance intensity and frequency caused by climate change, such as storms and droughts (Malhi et al, 2008; IPCC, 2014; McDowell et al, 2018) can transform these forests from sink to carbon source for the atmosphere (Malhi et al, 2014; Teixeira et al, 2015; Lu et al, 2019) In this scenario, the tree mortality increase in the leads to a higher carbon loss, surpassing the stock in new individuals and the growth of remaining trees in a specific period of time (Phillips et al, 2009; Aleixo et al, 2019)

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