A tree inventory and carbon stock assessment was conducted in three 50 x 100 meter randomly established sampling plots in the lower montane forest of Mt. Kalatungan, a protected area located in Mindanao, Philippines. A total of 31 species of trees belonging to 24 families that is dominated by Fagaceae, Lauraceae and Myrtaceae was recorded. The most frequent species are Lithocarpus spp., Syzygium spp., Neolitsea spp. Out of 833 tree species, 49.70% lies in the 21-28cm dbh class based on sturge’s rule. The greatest dbh recorded was 73cm from Syzygium spp. of the family Myrtaceae. The site obtained a greater mean stand density of 555 trees ha-1. The site also contained many trees with relatively greater dbh resulting to a high biomass and carbon stock estimate. The mean tree biomass density estimate was 628 ton ha-1 while the mean Carbon density estimate was 282 ton C ha-1. These results provide a robust justification for an effective protected area management in order to salvage the area from further deforestation and forest degradation. The conservation of forest resources, especially trees in Mt. Kalatungan would be very crucial in the Philippine’s efforts to mitigate climate chang
Trees in forests are both sources and sinks of carbon (C). They are crucial in the sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, a greenhouse gas that is one of the leading causes of global warming which can result to climate change. Trees store C into the production of woody biomass through the process of photosynthesis. Trees also increase soil organic carbon content (Brown and Pearce 1994), a relatively permanent stock of carbon in forests. Globally, forests act as a natural storage for carbon, contributing approximately 80% of terrestrial above-ground, and 40% of terrestrial belowground carbon (Kirschbaum 1996). Chave (2005) reported that tropical forests hold great stores of carbon, and is the most persistent carbon sink compared to boreal forest and temperate forest (Pan et al., 2011). Current efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change are through ways of increasing carbon sequestration (Sedjo and Salomon 1988) and/or mitigating carbon emission (Lasco et al., 2004). Thus the simple way to increase carbon stocks is to plant more trees and manage them properly (Lasco et al., 2004).
In the recent past, CO2 has gained a lot of attention as a greenhouse gas, as it has the potential to influence the climate pattern of the world. Anthropogenic activities like deforestation and forest degradation have caused an increase in the level of CO2 in the atmosphere and disrupted the global carbon cycle. As the environmental effects of such activities have started to influence climate, many programs have been launced in order to mitigate climate change. Since the forestry options have been proven to be very viable because of its cost effectiveness, many were convinced that carbon sequestration through forest conservation is the most practical option. Forest conservation has a potential to form a chief component in the mitigation of global warming and adaptation to climate change. Carbon sequestration from the atmosphere can be very advantageous from both environmental and socioeconomic perspectives. The environmental perspective includes the removal of CO2 from the atmosphere, the improvement of soil quality, and the increase in biodiversity (Batjes and Sombroek 1997); while socioeconomic benefits include increased yields (Sombroek et al., 1993) and monetary incomes from potential carbon trading schemes (McDowell 2002). People, especially those who are from the agricultural and forestry sector will likely benefit from good yields due to the reduction of climate change-related hazards.
Being situated in the tropics, Philippine tropical forests are an important sinks of carbon (C). However, the continued reduction of the country’s forest cover is undermining its potential to contribute to global carbon sequestration for climate change mitigation. In 1992, the Philippines passed the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Law which is aimed for the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable development. Several protected areas known as natural parks were established in many parts of the country including in Mindanao. A recognized natural park by virtue of the NIPAS law, Mt. Kalatungan, the sixth highest mountain in the country with an elevation of 2,824 (9,265 ft) masl in Mindanao is not exempted from the continued decline in forest cover. The reduction of forest cover also implies removal of trees which will result to reduced carbon sequestration and storage potentials. Despite the many previous studies that carried out estimation of tree biomass and carbon stocks in the area, there remains a need to do the activity periodically in order to track changes and make decisions on the necessary interventions. It is therefore for this reason that the study was conducted. This study aimed to furnish stakeholders such as students, future researchers, and especially policy makers a credible data as basis for decision insofar as how the area would be managed, protected and conserved. Specifically, the study site shall be the lower montane forest (1300-1600m) of Mt. Kalatungan.
Check out more J. Bio. Env. Sci. 19(5), 1-6, November 2021.
