Quick Estimates of Carbon in Loblolly Pine Plantations Using Carbon-Basal Area Ratios

Many people have concerns about global warming, climate change, depletion of the ozone layer, and related issues. These concerns make carbon released into the atmosphere a significant issue. Regardless of personal feelings about the politics of these issues, carbon sequestration and storage in forests is a necessity for life. Have you ever wondered how much carbon is sequestered and stored in your loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation?

Recently, forest carbon markets have once again become an opportunity for forest landowners to receive some supplemental income. At a basic level, these markets allow industries that are emitting carbon during their production process to offset those emissions by purchasing carbon credits from others that are sequestering carbon beyond their usual practices. Carbon credits can be purchased from forest landowners who are sequestering carbon beyond what they normally would do without the presence of a forest carbon market—or their business-as-usual (BAU) forest management practices. Carbon markets allow these industries to offset their carbon emissions from landowners who are sequestering an additional amount of carbon beyond their BAU, hence the concept of additionality.

Increasingly, nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) landowners who own smaller acreages in Mississippi have access to forest carbon markets that allow them to participate more actively. Some refer to NIPF landowners as family forest owners. NIPF and larger public and private forest landowners alike will be interested in knowing how many metric tons of carbon and carbon dioxide equivalents (abbreviated as MtCO2e) their plantation is sequestering and storing.

This publication describes a quick and low-cost means of obtaining a carbon per acre estimate. It then shows how carbon per acre is mathematically converted into metric tons, as well as how carbon is converted into metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (MtCO2e) by using basic assumptions about the chemistry of wood. By using variable-radius sampling, we can take advantage of relationships between tree stem growth and carbon production, to ultimately estimate carbon per acre.

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The information given here is for educational purposes only. References to commercial products, trade names, or suppliers are made with the understanding that no endorsement is implied and that no discrimination against other products or suppliers is intended.

Publication 3841 (POD-01-26)

By Curtis L. VanderSchaaf, Associate Professor, Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center. Dr. Matt Russell, a biometrics consultant, and Dr. Aaron Weiskittel, University of Maine, provided several useful comments.