Estimation of Forest Soil Carbon Stocks with Yasso using a Dendrochronological Approach

Ah Reum Lee, Nam Jin Noh, Tae Kyung Yoon, Sue Kyoung Lee, Kyung Won Seo, Woo-Kyun Lee, Yongsung Cho and Yowhan Son

 

Abstract

 The role of forest and soil carbon under global climate change is getting important as a carbon sink and it is necessary to research on applicable forest models as well as in the field for a study of these dynamics. On this
study, historical annual litter dataset as a major input data for the forest soil carbon model, Yasso was established
using a dendrochronological reconstruction method, and the soil carbon dynamics of a Pinus densiflora forest in
Gwangneung, Korea was simulated using Yasso. The amount of litter (needle, branch, stem and fine root)
production, which was estimated using the dendrochronological method, has increased continuously from 1971 to
2006. Furthermore, there was no significant error between estimated and measured values of litter production (needle and branch) in 2006. The average of simulated soil carbon stock up to 30 cm depth was 46.30±4.28 t C ha−1, which accounted for 53% of carbon stock in trees of the forest, and had no significant difference and error with measured soil carbon stock. Under the climate change trend in Korea according to IPCC A1B scenario, it was estimated that the simulated soil carbon stock in the region would increase continuously from 1971 to 2041 and then decreased until 2100. Compared to the result of the scenario that there is no climate change, the soil carbon stock could be decreased up to 7.58% at 2100. It was inferred the dendrochronological reconstruction method and simulation of Yasso model are useful to estimate soil carbon dynamics of the natural P. densiflora forest. Follow-up researches, such as improvement of the dendrochronological method and Yasso model and their application and validation in various environment, are needed to produce more reliable results.
Key words : dendrochronological reconstruction, litter decomposition, Pinus densiflora, soil carbon model, Yasso