Assessment of carbon pools in semi-arid forests of India is crucial in order to develop a better action plan for management of such ecosystems under global climate change and rapid urbanization. This study, therefore, aims to assess the above- and belowground carbon storage potential of a semi-arid forest ecosystem of Delhi. For the study, two forest sites were selected, i.e., north ridge (NRF) and central ridge (CRF). Aboveground tree biomass was estimated by using growing stock volume equations developed by Forest Survey of India and specific wood density. Understory biomass was determined by harvest sampling method. Belowground (root) biomass was determined by using a developed equation. For soil organic carbon (SOC), soil samples were collected at 0–10-cm and 10–20-cm depth and carbon content was estimated. The present study estimated 90.51 Mg ha−1 biomass and 63.49 Mg C ha−1 carbon in the semi-arid forest of Delhi, India. The lower diameter classes showed highest tree density, i.e., 240 and 328 individuals ha−1 (11–20 cm), basal area, i.e., 8.7 (31–40 cm) and 6.08 m2 ha−1 (11–20 cm), and biomass, i.e., 24.25 and 23.57 Mg ha−1 (11–20 cm) in NRF and CRF, respectively. Furthermore, a significant contribution of biomass (7.8 Mg ha−1) in DBH class 81–90 cm in NRF suggested the importance of mature trees in biomass and carbon storage. The forests were predominantly occupied by Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC which also showed the highest contribution to the (approximately 40%) tree biomass. Carbon allocation was maximum in aboveground (40–49%), followed by soil (29.93–37.7%), belowground or root (20–22%), and litter (0.27–0.59%). Our study suggested plant biomass and soils are the potential pools of carbon storage in these forests. Furthermore, carbon storage in tree biomass was found to be mainly influenced by tree density, basal area, and species diversity. Trees belonging to lower DBH classes are the major carbon sinks in these forests. In the study, native trees contributed to the significant amount of carbon stored in their biomass and soils. The estimated data is important in framing forest management plans and strategies aimed at enhancing carbon sequestration potential of semi-arid forest ecosystems of India.
Potential of community participation and non‐timber forest species in forest restoration has been widely discussed but rarely demonstrated through long‐term empirical studies. An attempt was made to restore the communal forest in temperate Indian Himalaya by mixed planting of multipurpose broad‐leaved trees, bamboo, and medicinal herbs chosen by local people based on pooled indigenous and scientific knowledge. Funding was terminated after 7 years, while people–researcher interactions and monitoring of the restored forest and competing land uses/economic activities continued. People viewed co‐occurrence of gregarious flowering induced mortality of bamboo and excessive crop/beehive damage by wildlife in the 10th year as a setback. Further, they envisioned threats to intact forest from mounting timber demand. As a common mitigation measure, they planted in gaps fast‐growing and nitrogen‐fixing Alnus nepalensis excluded in the initial treatment for harboring pests, yielding inferior products, and its negative association with medicinal herbs/bamboo. After 20 years, transplanted trees/bamboos were over two times taller than the naturally regenerated ones. The plantation had 75% of belowground and 17% of aboveground carbon stocks and 39% of flowering plant species in intact forest and was economically more efficient than intact forest and farms. People did not expand the trial because of its ineffectiveness in mitigating new problems and satisfying new aspirations. Agricultural abandonment nullified restoration‐mediated carbon sequestration. There is a need of translating ecological concepts underlying cost‐effective restoration into practices and of policies supporting participatory long‐term adaptive forest restoration and its synergy with other economic activities in cultural landscapes.
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