Abstract
Old-growth forests play a decisive role in preserving biodiversity and ecological functions. In an environment frequently disturbed by fire, the importance of old-growth forests as both a carbon stock as well as a source of emissions when burnt is not fully understood. Here, we report on carbon accumulation with time since the last fire (TSF) in the dominant forest types of the Clay Belt region in eastern North America. To do so, we performed a fuel inventory (tree biomass, herbs and shrubs, dead woody debris, and duff loads) along four chronosequences. Carbon emissions by fire through successional stages were simulated using the Canadian Fire Effects Model. Our results show that fuel accumulates with TSF, especially in coniferous forests. Potential carbon emissions were on average 11.9 t·ha−1 and 29.5 t·ha−1 for old-growth and young forests, respectively. In conclusion, maintaining old-growth forests in the Clay Belt landscape not only ensures a sustainable management of the boreal forest, but it also optimizes the carbon storage.
Highlights
Forest management that optimizes carbon storage in the boreal forest could be an effective tool to mitigate anthropogenic carbon emissions [1]
the last fire (TSF) was significantly related to all fuel loads materials and total fuel loads for TA, JP, black spruce forests originating from severe fire (BS-S), and black spruce forests originating from non-severe fire (BS-NS) boreal forests in the Clay Belt
Our results confirmed our first hypothesis that fuel accumulates with TSF in Clay Belt coniferous forests, despite variations in the dynamics of the different fuel materials
Summary
Forest management that optimizes carbon storage in the boreal forest could be an effective tool to mitigate anthropogenic carbon emissions [1]. By storing more than one third of the global terrestrial carbon [2,3], the boreal biome is the world’s largest carbon stock. Limited by the cold temperature and short growing season, boreal forests’ annual carbon uptake (0.004 Pg·C/m2 ·year) is low in comparison with the tropical forests (0.008 Pg·C/m2 ·year) or the temperate forests (0.009 Pg·C/m2 ·year) [4]. Large amounts of carbon can accumulate on the boreal forest’s floor since the decomposition of dead material is limited by the cold climate conditions that prevail therein [2]. Boreal ecosystems provide a diverse range of habitats for wildlife [6]
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