Where the Trees Are

Discussion in 'The big picture' started by 9anda1f, Jul 26, 2013.

  1. 9anda1f

    9anda1f Administrator Staff Member

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    This needs to be done worldwide.

    https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=76697

    [​IMG]
     
  2. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    While we wait for the work to be done to quantify the total global carbon store in forests, at least we have an idea of which forests store the most carbon:

    Mackey and colleagues found the highest amount of carbon was contained in a forest located in Victoria's Central Highlands, which held 1900 tonnes of carbon per hectare.

    This most "carbon-dense" forest was a stand of unlogged mountain ash over 100 years old. Mountain ash live for at least 350 years, says Mackey.

    He says similar but lower carbon densities were found for other temperate moist forests in New Zealand, Chile and the Pacific coast of North America.

    By comparison, the average tropical forest had somewhere between 200 and 500 tonnes of carbon per hectare, says Mackey.

    "The common understanding is that tropical forests store the most carbon because they're the most biologically productive and have the most plant growth," says Mackey.

    But, he says, researchers have missed the fact that nearly half of the carbon locked up in temperate forests like the mountain ash, is in fallen trees and other dead plant material.

    In tropical forests, dead plant material is rapidly decomposed and carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere through respiration.

    By contrast, moist temperate forests are warm enough to encourage good growth rates, dead plant material decays much more slowly and carbon-rich dead biomass lasts much longer.


    Source: ABC Science News (2009) Australian forests lock up most carbon
     
  3. Unmutual

    Unmutual Junior Member

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    This is way better than Tang, so thumbs up to NASA.

    Incidentally, here is a carbon calculator for trees, mostly designed for urban settings apparently(I was wondering how they figure it out).

    Bah, that link is only good for use with microsoft office...don't these people know to use Open Office yet?
     
  4. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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