STRATEGY & METHODS FOR ESTIMATING & PROJECTING CARBON STOCK CHANGES zGOAL: To estimate carbon benefits from forestry mitigation projects yC-stock change in baseline scenario yC-stock change in project scenario yNet C-stock change or additionality zTWO PHASES yProject development phase yProject implementation phase zsystems

Steps for Carbon inventory zStep 1: Definition of objectives, land use systems and area for estimating carbon benefits of a project zStep 2: Description of project activities and area zStep 3: Selection of C-pools and methods for measurement and monitoring the pools by selecting the parameters for each pool zStep 4: Definition of the project boundary and map preparation zStep 5: Stratification of the ecosystem and land use

Contd…………. zStep 6: Developing sampling design and strategy for biomass and soil carbon zStep 7: Laying plots in different land use systems zStep 8: Field measurements, data format and data recording zStep 9: Data analysis for biomass and soil carbon estimation zStep 10: Projecting C-stock changes using PROCOMAP model zStep 11:Reporting C-stocks for different pools under baseline and project scenario zStep 12: Reporting of incremental carbon benefits

zStep-1: Objective; yi) Estimating C-stock changes in BSL & Project scenario zStep-2 & 3: Land use systems & project activities yLand use systems: Degraded forestland, farmland, village commons yProject activities: A&R- Natural regeneration, mixed-species forestry, plantation yArea under these categories

Step-4: Selection of carbon pools

Step 5: Selection of Methods

Step-6: Parameters to be measured

Project boundary and map

Step-8: Stratification of project area

Sampling at project development phase zBaseline scenario: yDegraded forestland yDegraded pasture land yDegraded farmland zProject scenario-Activities: yNatural regeneration xDifferent years (near by area) yMixed species plantation xDifferent years (near by area ) yMonoculture plantation xDifferent age (near by area) yPlots to be laid in all such land categories

Step-9: Sampling design & Strategy zMETHOD: ‘Plot method’ / ‘Quadrat method’ zTYPE OF PLOT: Quadrat, circular, strip

Size & Number of Plots zStatistical approach: Based on estimates; variance of C-stock, cost of sampling and precision zThumb rule; used most often zSampling separately for trees, shrubs, herbs

Examples of Number & Size of plots Land use systems TreesShrubHerb/GrassSoil Size of plot (m) No. of plots Size of plot (m) No. of plots Size of plot (m) No. of plots Size of plot (m) No. of plots Natural regeneration or Heterogenous vegetation 50 X 4055 X 5101 X 1201 X X 5045 X 5101 X 1201 X 120 Plantations with homogenous vegetation or Uniform species distribution and density 50 X 20 or 40 X X 581 X 1161 X 116 Degraded forest or barren or fallow land 50 X 4055 X 5101 X 1201 X 120

Sampling sites at Project development phase zBaseline scenario- Land use systems yDegraded forestland yDegraded village commons yFarmland zProject activities yTeak regeneration; 5 or 10 or 15 yrs ySecondary forest regeneration; 5 or 12 or 20 yrs yNatural forest (old growth)

Step 10: Laying of plots in the field zI. Stratified Random Sampling zII. Systematic Sampling

Stratified Random Sampling yInvolves locating the plots in the field in an unbiased way & suitable to both heterogeneous and homogenous vegetation ySampling approach involves following steps: yStep 1: Stratify land use systems & project activity areas yStep 2: Prepare a grid map of the project area, demarcating each land use system or project activity. Size of the grid as small as feasible (say 50 m X 50 m) yStep 3: Give numbers to each grid yStep 4: Randomly pick the grid numbers, using random table or lottery system.

Contd…………….. yStep 5: Locate tree plots in the grids selected in the field with respect to some permanent visible land mark and mark the boundary of each tree plot or use GPS yStep 6: Prepare and store a map with all the details, including the location of sample plots marked on it. yLocation of sample plots in the field; overlay the land use system map over the grid scale map yUsing GIS & marking plots in the selected grids. GPS measurements of the corner points of plots must be recorded on the map for revisits

Systematic sampling yEmploys a simple method of selecting every k th unit (grid) starting with a number chosen at random from 1 to N. yStep 1: Select the number of plots (quadrats) for the study (n), which have to be laid in the field for sampling, say for example n = 5 of 50 m X 40 m dimension yStep 2: Stratify the land use system into homogenous sub-strata yStep 3: Obtain a map showing the grids depicting each sampling stratum and estimate the total number of grids for each strata (N), say for example 200 grids with an area of 40 ha yStep 4: Calculate the sampling interval ‘k’ by using the following equation, yk = N/n where, k = sampling interval of grids or plots = 200/5 = 40

Contd…………... yStep 5: Draw a random number which is less than k (sampling interval for grid), say 25 th grid yStep 6: Select and mark the first grid based on the random number selected yFirst sampling grid or plot number is 25 ySecond sampling grid or plot = Sampling interval k (40) + first sampling grid (25) = 65 th grid yThird sampling grid or plot = Sampling interval k (40) + second sampling grid (65) = 105 th grid. ySimilarly, the successive grids or plots will be systematically sampled, till the n th grid or plot (in the example 5 th grid) is located.

Field measurements: Trees

GBH/DBH measurement

Field measurements: Shrubs

Woody litter including Fallen deadwood yWoody litter production yStanding woody litter ySTEPS: STANDING WOODY LITTER yStep 1: Select and use the shrub plots marked in the field yStep 2: Select the peak month when the litter fall is maximum based on local experience yStep 3: Collect woody litter from all shrub plots and merge to one heap & estimate the fresh weight yStep 4: Take a sample of say 1 kg for dry weight estimation in the laboratory as % of fresh weight yStep 5: Estimate weight of dry woody litter per hectare using fresh and dry weight litter data and area of shrub plots.

Soil carbon ySoil carbon is the dominant C-pool in many projects ySoil carbon in top 15 & 30 cm yCollecting soil sample for carbon estimation involves the following steps: yStep 1: Select the plots marked for shrub biomass estimation, 8 to 10 plots yStep 2: Mark the mid-point of the 5mx5m shrub plot or any point randomly

Contd……... yStep 3: Using the soil agar, drill the soil to a depth of 0-15 cm and collect the sample. Repeat procedure for cm depth. yStep 4: Merge soil samples of 0-15 cm from the two shrub plots of a tree plot. Remove plant debris. Collect about 0.5 kg of fresh soil into a plastic bag for laboratory analysis. Repeat for cm soil depth.

Bulk density yConverting SOC concentration (in % terms) to tC/ha needs bulk density yStep 1: Select 1 shrub plot, out of 2 plots laid per tree plot yStep 2: Weigh an empty bottle & fill this with soil. Tap the bottle, keep filling the soil till the level reaches the brim. Mark the level of soil in the bottle. The compaction of the soil in the bottle may be comparable to what is present in the field yStep 3: Note down the weight of the bottle with the soil yStep 4: Empty the bottle and add water to the container till the marked level. Note down the volume of the water by pouring it in the measuring cylinder

Equations for SOC zBulk density (g/cc) = (Weight of the soil in the bottle)/ (Volume of the water in the bottle) zSoil mass (t/ha) = [Area (10,000 m 2 ) X Depth (0.3 m) X Bulk density X 10 3 grams/Kg]/(1000Kg/tonne) zSOC (tonne/ha) = (Soil mass in 0-30 cm) X SOC concentration (%)/100

Biomass estimation zAGB; i) Using biomass equations xGeneric xSpecies specific xBased on: DBH, Height & Basal area yii) Volume estimation of trees yiii) Harvest method; plantations zBGB; AGB X 0.26 zLitter; Stock at base-year and project-year zCarbon; Biomass X 0.5

Estimating Net Additional Incremental Carbon Benefit zReporting incremental carbon benefits requires estimation and reporting of: yNet change in C-stock covering all C-pools in baseline scenario & project scenario yEstimation of leakage of carbon benefits yIncremental carbon benefit (in tC for the period selected) = (net change in C-stock in project scenario) - (net change in C-stock in baseline scenario) - (estimated leakage)

Contd…….. zCarbon benefits of the project = [(Total carbon stock at end of 5 years) – (Total carbon stock at year 0)] zNet incremental carbon benefits = (Estimates of carbon benefits under the project scenario) - (Baseline scenario carbon stock change) - (Leakage estimates)

Monitoring of C-stock changes zAdopt plot method zSelect frequency of monitoring yAGB: 2 or 3 years ySOC: 5 years zConduct field & Lab studies zEstimate C-stocks

Criteria for Selection of Project Site zAvailability of multiple land categories yCommunity lands/Government lands yOpen forest land yFarm land for afforestation yForestland subjected to extensive extraction zContiguous parcel (cluster of villages) with in a forest division or range y10 to 30 villages y5000 to 10,000 ha

Contd…….. zPotential for Community forestry/JFM yCase study - I zPotential for ‘Industry-farmers’ cooperative yCase study- II zPotential for high carbon sequestration growth rates - Initial phase ySoil status yRainfall