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From forest floor to tree top: Partitioning of biomass and carbon stock in multiple strata of forest vegetation in Western Himalaya

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Abstract

The foremost role of forest vegetation in storing biomass and carbon (C) stock constitutes one of the main nature-based solutions to mitigate climate change. In this study, we aimed to quantify biomass and C stock partitioning in multiple vegetation strata (tree, shrub, herb, and ground floor layers) of major forest types in Jammu and Kashmir, Western Himalaya, India. We used a stratified random cluster sampling strategy to collect field data in 96 forest stands of 12 forest types (altitudinal range: 350 to 3450 m) in the study region. We evaluated the degree to which the carbon stock of the entire ecosystem was dependent on the multiple vegetation strata using the Pearson method. Across all the forest types, the average total ecosystem-level biomass was estimated to be 181.95 Mgha−1 (range: 60.64–528.98). Forest strata-wise, the maximum biomass of 172.92 Mgha−1 (range: 50.64-514.97) was found in the tree vegetation, followed by 5.58 Mgha−1 (range: 2.59–8.93) in understory vegetation (shrubs and herbaceous), and 3.44 Mgha−1 (range: 0.97 and 9.14) in the forest floor. The total ecosystem-level biomass showed a peak at mid-elevation coniferous forest types, whereas the lowest was observed in low-elevation broad leaved forest types. At the ecosystem-level, on average, the understory contributed 3% and the forest floor 2% to the total C stock across the forest types. The shrub layer contributed up to 80% of total understory C, with the herbaceous layer accounting for the remaining 20%. The ordination analysis clearly shows that anthropogenic and environmental variables significantly (p ≤ 0.002) influence the forest types’ C stock in the region. Our findings have significant implications for conserving natural forest ecosystems and restoring degraded forest  landscapes in this Himalayan region, which in turn can lead to better carbon sequestration and climate mitigation outcomes.

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Acknowledgements

SMH and AAK gratefully acknowledge the support provided by the research scholars and staff at the BIOTA Lab of the Centre for Biodiversity & Taxonomy, Department of Botany, University of Kashmir throughout this investigation. The Principal Chief Conservator Forests, Government of Jammu and Kashmir, India is also duly acknowledged for permission and support during our fieldwork in the study area.

Funding

AAK expresses gratitude to the National Remote Sensing Centre (ISRO), Government of India, Hyderabad, for funding this study through the "Measurement of Vegetation and Biomass Parameters under Vegetation Carbon Pool”.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Biodiversity & Taxonomy, Department of Botany, University of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India

    Shiekh Marifatul Haq & Anzar Ahmad Khuroo

  2. Department of Botany, University of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar, 190006, India

    Shiekh Marifatul Haq & Irfan Rashid

  3. Department of Botany, University of Okara, Okara, 56300, Pakistan

    Muhammad Waheed

Authors
  1. Shiekh Marifatul Haq
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  2. Irfan Rashid
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  3. Muhammad Waheed
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  4. Anzar Ahmad Khuroo
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Contributions

SMH: Investigation, Methodology, Writing- Original draft preparation, Visualization, Data curation, Reviewing and Editing, Revision. IR: Supervision, Writing- Reviewing and Editing. MW: Software, Visualization, Writing- Reviewing and Editing. AAK: Conceptualization, Funding, Supervision, Methodology, Validation, Data curation, Writing—Original draft, Reviewing and Editing, Revision.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anzar Ahmad Khuroo.

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Haq, S.M., Rashid, I., Waheed, M. et al. From forest floor to tree top: Partitioning of biomass and carbon stock in multiple strata of forest vegetation in Western Himalaya. Environ Monit Assess 195, 812 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-023-11376-6

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