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Measuring Carbon in Forests

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Managing Forest Carbon in a Changing Climate

Abstract

Accurate measurement of carbon stocks and flux in forests is one of the most important scientific bases for successful climate and carbon policy implementation. Currently, there are several methods for estimating forest carbon stocks and flux. We review the four categories of methods for measuring forest biomass and estimating carbon which are currently in use: (i) forest inventory (biomass); (ii) remote sensing (relationship between biomass and land cover); (iii) eddy covariance (direct measurement of CO2 release and uptake); and (iv) the inverse method (relationship among biomass, CO2 flux and CO2 atmospheric transport). These methods all vary in their level of accuracy and the resolution at which data can be obtained. Each technique has its own advantages and disadvantages and there are appropriate circumstances for using each one in measuring CO2 flux and carbon storage for different temporal and spatial scales of evaluation and measurement.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Annex I Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) include the industrialized countries that were members of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Develop­ment) in 1992, plus countries with economies in transition (the EIT Parties), including the Russian Federation, the Baltic States, and several Central and Eastern European States.

  2. 2.

    Flux is the rate of flow of energy or particles across a given surface.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, 195 Prospect St, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA

    Xin Zhang, Yong Zhao & Xuhui Lee

  2. Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, 360 Prospect St, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA

    Mark S. Ashton

Authors
  1. Xin Zhang
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  2. Yong Zhao
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  3. Mark S. Ashton
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  4. Xuhui Lee
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mark S. Ashton .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , School of Forestry and Environmental Stu, Yale University, Prospect St 360, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    Mark S. Ashton

  2. , School of Forestry and Environmental Stu, Yale University, Prospect Street 360, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    Mary L. Tyrrell

  3. , School of Forestry and Environmental Stu, Yale University, Prospect Street 360, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    Deborah Spalding

  4. , School of Forestry and Environmental Stu, Yale University, Prospect Street 360, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    Bradford Gentry

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© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

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Zhang, X., Zhao, Y., Ashton, M.S., Lee, X. (2012). Measuring Carbon in Forests. In: Ashton, M., Tyrrell, M., Spalding, D., Gentry, B. (eds) Managing Forest Carbon in a Changing Climate. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2232-3_7

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