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Allometric and mass relationships of Betula populifolia in a naturally assembled urban brownfield: implications for carbon modeling

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Abstract

Aboveground forest carbon sequestration is known to be a function of allometric relationships, stand history, and edaphic conditions. We investigate how the heterogeneous edaphic conditions of a naturally assembled urban brownfield influence the allometric relationships of the dominant species Betula populifolia Marsh. We measured diameter at breast height (DBH), height, mass and age on four sites that exhibited considerable edaphic differences. Site conditions did not appear to impact total tree mass to diameter relationships. However, mean DBH at the various sites ranged from 6.7 to 9.8 cm and the mean height from 637.4 to 911.8 cm. In addition, above ground woody biomass ranged from 40017 to 71935 kg ha−1. Apparently resource allocation between growth and maintenance within the heterogeneous edaphic conditions of the urban context clearly results in considerably different growth rates and stocking densities. These results help to establish accurate metrics for the development of inventory-based forest carbon allocation models within the difficult environs of the urban context.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge Carolyn Haynes, Andrew Straub, and Phillip Detwiler for their assistance with field inventories and sample preparation. We also express our deep appreciation to Peddrick Weiss, Ildiko Pechmann, and John D. Bogden for their earlier work towards the establishment of soil metal critical threshold levels. Partial funding for the project was supplied by both McIntier Stennis grant NJ17312 and the Kuser Endowment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Forestry & Natural Resources, West Virginia University, 337 Percival Hall, Morgantown, WV, 26506, USA

    Gregory A. Dahle

  2. Department of Landscape Architecture, Urban and Community Forestry, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers the State University, 93 Lipman Drive, Blake Hall 112, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901-8524, USA

    Frank J. Gallagher

  3. Energy and Resources Group, University of California, 310 Barrows Hall, Berkeley, CA, 94720-3050, USA

    Dimitry Gershensond

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 195 University Ave, Newark, NJ, 07102-1811, USA

    Karina V. R. Schäfer

  5. Urban Forestry Program, Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers, The State University, 14 College Farm Road, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901-8551, USA

    Jason C. Grabosky

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  1. Gregory A. Dahle
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  2. Frank J. Gallagher
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  5. Jason C. Grabosky
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Correspondence to Frank J. Gallagher.

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Dahle, G.A., Gallagher, F.J., Gershensond, D. et al. Allometric and mass relationships of Betula populifolia in a naturally assembled urban brownfield: implications for carbon modeling. Urban Ecosyst 17, 1147–1160 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-014-0377-9

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