Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation
Monitoring forest carbon stock and sequestration potential is vital for evaluating the role of forestry in Carbon dioxide (CO₂) removal. Urban reserve forests (URFs) established in Indian cities as part of urban greening strategy, contribute significantly to CO₂ offset. However, their information on...
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Elsevier
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Next Sustainability |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949823625000649 |
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| author | Gisandu K. Malunguja Suniva Aligonza Ratan Chowdhury Mhuji B. Kilonzo Bijay Thakur Ashalata Devi |
| author_facet | Gisandu K. Malunguja Suniva Aligonza Ratan Chowdhury Mhuji B. Kilonzo Bijay Thakur Ashalata Devi |
| author_sort | Gisandu K. Malunguja |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Monitoring forest carbon stock and sequestration potential is vital for evaluating the role of forestry in Carbon dioxide (CO₂) removal. Urban reserve forests (URFs) established in Indian cities as part of urban greening strategy, contribute significantly to CO₂ offset. However, their information on CO₂ removal for climate change mitigation is limited. To bridge this knowledge gap, an inventory survey employing both destructive and non-destructive techniques were used to estimate this. The estimated total carbon stock was 218.75 Mg ha⁻¹ for Bhomoraguri URF and 236.15 Mg ha⁻¹ for Balipara URF, which is equivalent to 799.1 Mg CO₂ ha⁻¹ and 866.65 Mg CO₂ ha⁻¹ of CO₂ being sequenced for, respectively. The noted carbon stock varied across carbon pools, with the highest contributions from SOC (113.6 Mg ha⁻¹ in Bhomoraguri and 124.85 Mg ha⁻¹ in Balipara), followed by overstory layer (97.33 and 103. 25 Mg ha⁻¹) and the lowest from herbs layers (2.68 and 3.05 Mg ha⁻¹ in Bhomoraguri and Balipara, respectively). The top contributors to carbon stock in the overstory are Tectona grandis, Dalbergia sissoo, and Ficus hirta. In the understory layer, species such as Bidens reptans, Cynodon dactylon, and Piper betle, showed notable contributions to carbon sequestration. The substantial carbon stock and sequestration potential suggests that URFs have the potential to serve as carbon sinks, helping to offset increased atmospheric CO₂ levels. The results offer valuable insights for climate mitigation and underscore the potential of nature-based solutions in addressing global climate challenges under various future climate scenarios. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e4ed74017e6946328ebe7605e554fe5b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2949-8236 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
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| series | Next Sustainability |
| spelling | doaj-art-e4ed74017e6946328ebe7605e554fe5b2025-08-20T03:31:37ZengElsevierNext Sustainability2949-82362025-01-01610016110.1016/j.nxsust.2025.100161Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigationGisandu K. Malunguja0Suniva Aligonza1Ratan Chowdhury2Mhuji B. Kilonzo3Bijay Thakur4Ashalata Devi5Department of Earth Science, Mbeya University of Science and Technology, BOX 131, Mbeya, Tanzania; Corresponding author.Department of Earth Science, Mbeya University of Science and Technology, BOX 131, Mbeya, TanzaniaDepartment of Botany, Rangapara College, Assam 784505, IndiaDepartment of Biology, University of Dodoma, BOX 338, Dodoma, TanzaniaDepartment of Environmental Science, Tezpur University, Assam 784028, IndiaDepartment of Environmental Science, Tezpur University, Assam 784028, IndiaMonitoring forest carbon stock and sequestration potential is vital for evaluating the role of forestry in Carbon dioxide (CO₂) removal. Urban reserve forests (URFs) established in Indian cities as part of urban greening strategy, contribute significantly to CO₂ offset. However, their information on CO₂ removal for climate change mitigation is limited. To bridge this knowledge gap, an inventory survey employing both destructive and non-destructive techniques were used to estimate this. The estimated total carbon stock was 218.75 Mg ha⁻¹ for Bhomoraguri URF and 236.15 Mg ha⁻¹ for Balipara URF, which is equivalent to 799.1 Mg CO₂ ha⁻¹ and 866.65 Mg CO₂ ha⁻¹ of CO₂ being sequenced for, respectively. The noted carbon stock varied across carbon pools, with the highest contributions from SOC (113.6 Mg ha⁻¹ in Bhomoraguri and 124.85 Mg ha⁻¹ in Balipara), followed by overstory layer (97.33 and 103. 25 Mg ha⁻¹) and the lowest from herbs layers (2.68 and 3.05 Mg ha⁻¹ in Bhomoraguri and Balipara, respectively). The top contributors to carbon stock in the overstory are Tectona grandis, Dalbergia sissoo, and Ficus hirta. In the understory layer, species such as Bidens reptans, Cynodon dactylon, and Piper betle, showed notable contributions to carbon sequestration. The substantial carbon stock and sequestration potential suggests that URFs have the potential to serve as carbon sinks, helping to offset increased atmospheric CO₂ levels. The results offer valuable insights for climate mitigation and underscore the potential of nature-based solutions in addressing global climate challenges under various future climate scenarios.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949823625000649Climate changeUrban greeningUrban ecologyCarbon stocksSequestration potentialCarbon dioxide equivalent |
| spellingShingle | Gisandu K. Malunguja Suniva Aligonza Ratan Chowdhury Mhuji B. Kilonzo Bijay Thakur Ashalata Devi Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation Next Sustainability Climate change Urban greening Urban ecology Carbon stocks Sequestration potential Carbon dioxide equivalent |
| title | Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation |
| title_full | Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation |
| title_fullStr | Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation |
| title_short | Carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests: Insights for climate change mitigation |
| title_sort | carbon stocks and sequestration potential in urban reserve forests insights for climate change mitigation |
| topic | Climate change Urban greening Urban ecology Carbon stocks Sequestration potential Carbon dioxide equivalent |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949823625000649 |
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