The Carbon Sequestration of Mangroves (Sonneratia alba and Avicennia marina) in a Community-Managed Forest Using Allometric Models

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Mangrove forests serve as important ecosystem due to their enormous capacity to store carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, thus, playing a vital role in mitigating climate change impact. One of the major effects of climate change is the fast rate of sea level rise. If carbon dioxide will not be lessened, the earth's lithosphere will experience global warming and other changes in the climate. In this study, the researchers assessed the carbon stock potential of S.albaand A. marina inCalatagan, Batangas.

METHODS

The study utilized transect-plot technique to assess the carbon storage accumulated by S.albaand A. marina. Purposive sampling was used to determine the presence of two mangrove species. A survey of growth parameters of mangrove was conducted to determine the GBH (Girth Breast Height) and height in the five (5) 10m x 10mquadrats. Allometric models by Komiyama (2005) were utilized to calculate tree carbon biomass and converted to equivalent carbon dioxide sequestered.

RESULTS

The results showed that S. alba has a higher structural characteristic with mean GBH of 43.57 cm, mean height of 5.18 m, biomass of 19.02 t/ha, and carbon stock of 8.56 t/ha. On the other hand, A. marina has a mean GBH of 29.2 cm, a height of 4.15 m, biomass of 7.55 t/ha, and carbon stock of 3.4 t/ha. This means that S.albacan sequestrate 157.04 metric tonsCOâ‚‚ compared to A. marina with 62.39 metric tonsCOâ‚‚. This implies that S.albacontains higherCOâ‚‚ from its biomass than A. marina.

DISCUSSIONS

The results imply the need to strengthen conservation, management and propagation of mangrove species reforestation focusing on S.alba. This also suggests that carbon sequestration must be considered in the planning of monitoring and assessing mangrove reforestation.