Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest
Abstract Quantifying climate mitigation benefits of biosphere protection or restoration requires accurate assessment of forest above‐ground biomass (AGB). This is usually estimated using tree size‐to‐mass allometric models calibrated with harvested biomass data. Using three‐dimensional laser measure...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Ecological Solutions and Evidence |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12197 |
| _version_ | 1797976221260185600 |
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| author | Kim Calders Hans Verbeeck Andrew Burt Niall Origo Joanne Nightingale Yadvinder Malhi Phil Wilkes Pasi Raumonen Robert G. H. Bunce Mathias Disney |
| author_facet | Kim Calders Hans Verbeeck Andrew Burt Niall Origo Joanne Nightingale Yadvinder Malhi Phil Wilkes Pasi Raumonen Robert G. H. Bunce Mathias Disney |
| author_sort | Kim Calders |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Quantifying climate mitigation benefits of biosphere protection or restoration requires accurate assessment of forest above‐ground biomass (AGB). This is usually estimated using tree size‐to‐mass allometric models calibrated with harvested biomass data. Using three‐dimensional laser measurements across the full range of tree size and shape in a typical UK temperate forest, we show that its AGB is 409.9 t ha−1, 1.77 times more than current allometric model estimates. This discrepancy arises partly from the bias towards small trees in allometric model calibration: 50% of AGB in this forest was in less than 7% of the largest trees (stem diameter > 53.1 cm), all larger than the trees used to calibrate the widely used allometric model. We present new empirical evidence that the fundamental assumption of tree size‐to‐mass scale‐invariance is not well‐justified for this kind of forest. This leads to substantial biases in current biomass estimates of broadleaf forests, not just in the UK, but elsewhere where the same or similar allometric models are applied, due to overdependence on non‐representative calibration data, and the departure of observed tree size‐to‐mass from simple size‐invariant relationships. We suggest that testing the underlying assumptions of allometric models more generally is an urgent priority as this has wider implications for climate mitigation through carbon sequestration. Forests currently act as a carbon sink in the UK. However, the anticipated increase in forest disturbances makes the trajectory and magnitude of this terrestrial carbon sink uncertain. We make recommendations for prioritizing measurements with better characterized uncertainty to address this issue. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T04:48:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-47664212836d4502a5ab58322ef3a4c2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2688-8319 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T04:48:42Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecological Solutions and Evidence |
| spelling | doaj.art-47664212836d4502a5ab58322ef3a4c22022-12-27T06:06:38ZengWileyEcological Solutions and Evidence2688-83192022-10-0134n/an/a10.1002/2688-8319.12197Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forestKim Calders0Hans Verbeeck1Andrew Burt2Niall Origo3Joanne Nightingale4Yadvinder Malhi5Phil Wilkes6Pasi Raumonen7Robert G. H. Bunce8Mathias Disney9CAVElab ‐ Computational & Applied Vegetation Ecology, Department of Environment Ghent University Gent BelgiumCAVElab ‐ Computational & Applied Vegetation Ecology, Department of Environment Ghent University Gent BelgiumUCL Department of Geography London UKNational Physical Laboratory Climate and Earth Observation Group Teddington Middlesex UKNational Physical Laboratory Climate and Earth Observation Group Teddington Middlesex UKEnvironmental Change Institute, School of Geography and the Environment University of Oxford Oxford UKUCL Department of Geography London UKMathematics, Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences Tampere University Tampere FinlandEstonian University of Life Science Tartu EstoniaUCL Department of Geography London UKAbstract Quantifying climate mitigation benefits of biosphere protection or restoration requires accurate assessment of forest above‐ground biomass (AGB). This is usually estimated using tree size‐to‐mass allometric models calibrated with harvested biomass data. Using three‐dimensional laser measurements across the full range of tree size and shape in a typical UK temperate forest, we show that its AGB is 409.9 t ha−1, 1.77 times more than current allometric model estimates. This discrepancy arises partly from the bias towards small trees in allometric model calibration: 50% of AGB in this forest was in less than 7% of the largest trees (stem diameter > 53.1 cm), all larger than the trees used to calibrate the widely used allometric model. We present new empirical evidence that the fundamental assumption of tree size‐to‐mass scale‐invariance is not well‐justified for this kind of forest. This leads to substantial biases in current biomass estimates of broadleaf forests, not just in the UK, but elsewhere where the same or similar allometric models are applied, due to overdependence on non‐representative calibration data, and the departure of observed tree size‐to‐mass from simple size‐invariant relationships. We suggest that testing the underlying assumptions of allometric models more generally is an urgent priority as this has wider implications for climate mitigation through carbon sequestration. Forests currently act as a carbon sink in the UK. However, the anticipated increase in forest disturbances makes the trajectory and magnitude of this terrestrial carbon sink uncertain. We make recommendations for prioritizing measurements with better characterized uncertainty to address this issue.https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12197three‐dimensional modellingallometrybiomasscarbonclimateforests |
| spellingShingle | Kim Calders Hans Verbeeck Andrew Burt Niall Origo Joanne Nightingale Yadvinder Malhi Phil Wilkes Pasi Raumonen Robert G. H. Bunce Mathias Disney Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest Ecological Solutions and Evidence three‐dimensional modelling allometry biomass carbon climate forests |
| title | Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| title_full | Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| title_fullStr | Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| title_full_unstemmed | Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| title_short | Laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| title_sort | laser scanning reveals potential underestimation of biomass carbon in temperate forest |
| topic | three‐dimensional modelling allometry biomass carbon climate forests |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12197 |
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