Reserves and Density of Organic Carbon in Russian Forests
Anatoly Utkin, Dmitry Zamolodchikov, Georgy Korovin and Olga Chestnykh
.Introduction. The area of State Forest Reserves (SFR) of Russian Federation (RF) is 1110.5 x 106 ha. The 99% of the area falls on boreal forests. It is important to have
corresponding data on carbon resources in phytomass (Cphytomass ), soil (Csoil ) and in these two pools together (Ctotal ) when modelling forest dynamics in RF in connection
with the global climate change.
Estimations are made for three landscape subzones and four macroregions after data for 59 ecoregions in the Asian part and for 56 subjects of federation in the European
part of Russia. Next data bases were used: a) state forest inventory; b) phytomass estimations for forest stands; c) phytomass estimations for meadows, peat bogs and
other non-forest areas; d) reserves of Csoil for stands of dominant tree species and non-forest lands.
2. Areas of lands in SFR. The total area of SFR is composed of forests 64%, altered forests (burned areas, clearcuts, etc.) - 10%, and non-forest
lands - 26%. The last ones increase in east- and northward directions (Fig.1).
Fig 5. Geographic distribution of Csoil density within SFR of Russia.
Fig 2. Distribution of Cphytomass in forest and Csoil in different land groups of SFR
for four macroregions and three landscape subzones, 109 t C.
800
120
1110.5
172.43
100
500
Non-forest lands
400
498.3
300
469.6
385.1
297.4
200
177.7
255.8
137.1
C soil, forests
80
C soil, altered forest lands
C soil, non-forest lands
60
40
49.47
31.42
77.85
5b. The density of Cphytomass and Csoil. The averaged density of Ctotal for SFR is 186 t ha-1, varying from 170 to 205 t ha-1 for four macroregions, and from 179 to 202 t ha-1 for three landscape subzones.
55.33
39.25
23.20
23.66
20
100
76.09
10.83
6.71
10.28
3.60
6.49
12.82
12.12
0
0
Russian
Federation
Russian
European
part
Western
Siberia
Eastern
Siberia
Far East
Northern
subzone
Middle
subzone
Russian
Federation
Southern
subzone
Russian
European
part
Western
Siberia
Eastern
Siberia
Far East
Northern
subzone
Middle
subzone
Southern
subzone
6. Deposition of Cphytomass in SFR of Russia. The averaged annual deposition of C is estimated as difference between reserves of Cphytomass in stands of adjacent age groups. The geographic relationships of deposition
are similar to distribution of density (Fig. 6 and Fig. 4). Deposition depends on stand age and peaks in young and middle-aged forests (Fig. 7). Young and middle-aged stands account for 51% of the total forest area
in the European part of Russia. Nearly the half (44%) of C for all SFR of Russia is deposited here. It is 243.16 x 106 t C year-1 for forests and 261.64 x 106 t C year-1 for all areas of SFR.
Fig. 6. Geographic distribution of deposition of Cphytomass density
within SFR of Russia.
Fig. 7. Annual deposition of Cphytomass in stands of different age groups
within SFR for four macroregions of Russia.
Area, 106 ha
4. Cphytomass and forest-forming species. Within the total reserve of Cphytomass in forests (31.42 x 109 t C) 77% is coniferous, 4% is hardwood deciduous, 15% is softwood
deciduous, and 4% is other tree and shrub species, including 3.4% of shrub stands of dwarf Siberian pine (while they occupy 5.4% of lands). The distribution of Csoil is
69% coniferous, 3% hardwood deciduous, 15% softwood deciduous, and 13% other. Reserves of Cphytomass for separate forest-forming species are estimated by occupied
areas (Fig. 3). Larch, pine, spruce, and birch stands occupy 77% of forest area within SFR, 77% of Cphytomass , and 70% of Csoil (Fig. 3).
Fig. 3. Distribution of areas and Cphytomass in stands of main forest-forming
species (logarithmic scale).
350
young
300
premature
250
mature and overmature
deposition
2000
middle-age
-1
Altered forest lands
1500
200
1000
150
100
500
50
1,2
1,0
Russian
Federation
Area, lg (106 tC)
0,8
Birch
0
0
Larch
-1
600
C phytomass, forests
Mean deposition, kgC ha yr
Forests
Reserves carbon, 109 tC
Reserves carbon, 109 tC
Fig. 4. Geographic distribution of Cphytomass density within SFR of
Russia.
3. Resources of Cphytomass and Csoil in SFR lands. Cphytomass of all lands in SFR is 34.35 x
109 t C, 98% of it is accounted for forests (Fig.2), whereas Cphytomass of two other
groups is 1% for each. Csoil of SFR is five times greater than Cphytomass and is distributed
between forests (61%), altered forests (8%) and non-forest lands (31%) (Fig.2). The
percentage relation between the northern, middle, and southern landscape subzones is
25:39:36 for Cphytomass and 45:32:23 for Csoil.
Fig 1. Distribution of the total area of SFR by lands groups for four
macroregions and three landscape subzones, 106 ha.
700
5a. Geographic variability of Cphytomass and Csoil density within SFR of Russia. The values of carbon density for both pools are estimated for ecoregions and federal districts of RF. They indicate the clear relationships. The
density of Cphytomass increases in the southward direction (Fig. 4), whereas it decreases slightly in the same direction for Csoil (Fig. 5). The density of Csoil depends significantly on the carbon reserve of non-forest lands,
peat bogs first of all.
Russian
European
part
Western
Siberia
Eastern
Siberia
Far East
Pine
0,6
Siberian pine
0,4
Spruce
The estimates of annual deposition per SFR area are averaged for Russia as 315 kg C ha-1 year-1 in forests and 221 kg C ha-1 year-1 on all lands. These values are, respectively, 656 and 544 kg C ha-1 year-1 for
the European part, 233 and 148 kg C ha-1 year-1 for the Western Siberia, 254 and 202 kg C ha-1 year-1 for the Eastern Siberia, 191 and 121 kg C ha-1 year-1 for the Far East.
0,2
Dw arf Siberian pine
Aspen
0,0
Fir
-0,2
Oak a. o.
Stone birch
-0,4
0,5
0,7
0,9
1,1
1,3
1,5
1,7
1,9
Reserves carbon phytomass, lg (109 tC)
2,1
2,3
2,5
7. Conclusion. At the area of SFR of Russia the forest cover percent is 45.3%, the bog cover percent is 11.5%, reserves of Cphytomass and Csoil are, respectively, 34.35 x 109 and 172.43 x 109 t C. The reserve of C in
coarse wood debris (Cc.w.d.) is tentatively estimated as 2.40 x 109 t C. When Cc.w.d. was being estimated, it was taken that the reserve of dead standing trees and windfall in forests is about 30% of living trees, and the
wood density Cc.w.d.for various species is 50% of the initial value. Consequently, Ctotal in SFR of Russia is 209.18 x 109 t C by the averaged density about 190 t C ha-1, if Cc.w.d. is taken into account. Csoil is the
greatest of all carbon pools. Therefore particular attention must be given to Csoil when the dynamics of boreal forests is modeled. Forests of the European part of Russia belong to carbon-deposing ecosystems,
whereas forests of Siberia and the Far East are, in contrast, carbon-conserving ecosystems. Dominance of mature and over-mature stands within the last ones can become an obstacle for reaction of local forest
ecosystems to global climate change.