Does the diversity of native tree species affect carbon stocks of restoration plantings?

• Grant number: 11/17317-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2011
• End date: October 31, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Forestry Resources and Forestry Engineering - Nature Conservation
• Principal Investigator: Pedro Henrique Santin Brancalion
• Grantee: Ana Cristina André
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The understanding of the relationship between the level of tree species diversity in a restoration planting and its potential for absorbing and retaining atmospheric carbon is a major issue to develop more effective methods of forest restoration in order to sell carbon credits, as well as to understand the role of tree species diversity in the success of tropical forest restoration. Hence, this study aims to investigate if the carbon stock in the aboveground living biomass is affected by the diversity of native tree species used in restoration plantings at the Atlantic Forest. This research will be carried out in an experiment set up in May 2006 at the Anhembi Experimental Station in Anhembi-SP, Department of Forest Sciences ESALQ/USP. In this experiment, each plot have 45 x 48 m and 480 individuals, containing 20, 60 and 120 species (treatments), set in the field in a in a completely randomized desing. We will obtain trunk samples from three individuals per species in order to asses wood density by the method of hydrostatic balance. With this data, we will assess the carbon stock of each species and individual by using an allometric equation obtained in a neighboring experiment, and annual inventories data of the experiment. (AU)