Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia
Abstract Background Wet tropical forests of Chocó, along the Pacific Coast of Colombia, are known for their high plant diversity and endemic species. With increasing pressure of degradation and deforestation, these forests have been prioritized for conservation and carbon offset through Reducing Emi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2019-03-01
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| Series: | Carbon Balance and Management |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-019-0117-9 |
| _version_ | 1818844284262023168 |
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| author | Victoria Meyer Sassan Saatchi António Ferraz Liang Xu Alvaro Duque Mariano García Jérôme Chave |
| author_facet | Victoria Meyer Sassan Saatchi António Ferraz Liang Xu Alvaro Duque Mariano García Jérôme Chave |
| author_sort | Victoria Meyer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Wet tropical forests of Chocó, along the Pacific Coast of Colombia, are known for their high plant diversity and endemic species. With increasing pressure of degradation and deforestation, these forests have been prioritized for conservation and carbon offset through Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) mechanisms. We provide the first regional assessment of forest structure and aboveground biomass using measurements from a combination of ground tree inventories and airborne Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar). More than 80,000 ha of lidar samples were collected based on a stratified random sampling to provide a regionally unbiased quantification of forest structure of Chocó across gradients of vegetation structure, disturbance and elevation. We developed a model to convert measurements of vertical structure of forests into aboveground biomass (AGB) for terra firme, wetlands, and mangrove forests. We used the Random Forest machine learning model and a formal uncertainty analysis to map forest height and AGB at 1-ha spatial resolution for the entire pacific coastal region using spaceborne data, extending from the coast to higher elevation of Andean forests. Results Upland Chocó forests have a mean canopy height of 21.8 m and AGB of 233.0 Mg/ha, while wetland forests are characterized by a lower height and AGB (13.5 m and 117.5 Mg/a). Mangroves have a lower mean height than upland forests (16.5 m), but have a similar AGB as upland forests (229.9 Mg/ha) due to their high wood density. Within the terra firme forest class, intact forests have the highest AGB (244.3 ± 34.8 Mg/ha) followed by degraded and secondary forests with 212.57 ± 62.40 Mg/ha of biomass. Forest degradation varies in biomass loss from small-scale selective logging and firewood harvesting to large-scale tree removals for gold mining, settlements, and illegal logging. Our findings suggest that the forest degradation has already caused the loss of more than 115 million tons of dry biomass, or 58 million tons of carbon. Conclusions Our assessment of carbon stocks and forest degradation can be used as a reference for reporting on the state of the Chocó forests to REDD+ projects and to encourage restoration efforts through conservation and climate mitigation policies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T05:11:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a966732e48de4b7f9c5fb60089ac7b78 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1750-0680 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T05:11:19Z |
| publishDate | 2019-03-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Carbon Balance and Management |
| spelling | doaj.art-a966732e48de4b7f9c5fb60089ac7b782022-12-21T20:34:47ZengBMCCarbon Balance and Management1750-06802019-03-0114111510.1186/s13021-019-0117-9Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of ColombiaVictoria Meyer0Sassan Saatchi1António Ferraz2Liang Xu3Alvaro Duque4Mariano García5Jérôme Chave6Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of TechnologyJet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of TechnologyJet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of TechnologyJet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of TechnologyDepartamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Nacional de ColombiaEnvironmental Remote Sensing Research Group, Department of Geology, Geography and Environment, University of AlcaláLaboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR 5174, CNRS Université Paul SabatierAbstract Background Wet tropical forests of Chocó, along the Pacific Coast of Colombia, are known for their high plant diversity and endemic species. With increasing pressure of degradation and deforestation, these forests have been prioritized for conservation and carbon offset through Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) mechanisms. We provide the first regional assessment of forest structure and aboveground biomass using measurements from a combination of ground tree inventories and airborne Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar). More than 80,000 ha of lidar samples were collected based on a stratified random sampling to provide a regionally unbiased quantification of forest structure of Chocó across gradients of vegetation structure, disturbance and elevation. We developed a model to convert measurements of vertical structure of forests into aboveground biomass (AGB) for terra firme, wetlands, and mangrove forests. We used the Random Forest machine learning model and a formal uncertainty analysis to map forest height and AGB at 1-ha spatial resolution for the entire pacific coastal region using spaceborne data, extending from the coast to higher elevation of Andean forests. Results Upland Chocó forests have a mean canopy height of 21.8 m and AGB of 233.0 Mg/ha, while wetland forests are characterized by a lower height and AGB (13.5 m and 117.5 Mg/a). Mangroves have a lower mean height than upland forests (16.5 m), but have a similar AGB as upland forests (229.9 Mg/ha) due to their high wood density. Within the terra firme forest class, intact forests have the highest AGB (244.3 ± 34.8 Mg/ha) followed by degraded and secondary forests with 212.57 ± 62.40 Mg/ha of biomass. Forest degradation varies in biomass loss from small-scale selective logging and firewood harvesting to large-scale tree removals for gold mining, settlements, and illegal logging. Our findings suggest that the forest degradation has already caused the loss of more than 115 million tons of dry biomass, or 58 million tons of carbon. Conclusions Our assessment of carbon stocks and forest degradation can be used as a reference for reporting on the state of the Chocó forests to REDD+ projects and to encourage restoration efforts through conservation and climate mitigation policies.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-019-0117-9LidarBiomassForest heightTropical forestRemote sensingRandom forest |
| spellingShingle | Victoria Meyer Sassan Saatchi António Ferraz Liang Xu Alvaro Duque Mariano García Jérôme Chave Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia Carbon Balance and Management Lidar Biomass Forest height Tropical forest Remote sensing Random forest |
| title | Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia |
| title_full | Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia |
| title_fullStr | Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia |
| title_short | Forest degradation and biomass loss along the Chocó region of Colombia |
| title_sort | forest degradation and biomass loss along the choco region of colombia |
| topic | Lidar Biomass Forest height Tropical forest Remote sensing Random forest |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13021-019-0117-9 |
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