BEIJING, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- A new study revealed that Chinese fir, a widely used species for afforestation programs in southern China, has the highest carbon sink rate in its middle age, shedding light on climate change mitigation actions, according to China Science Daily.
Chinese fir, or Cunninghamia lanceolata, is an important native conifer tree in southern China. However, the relationship between the carbon sink capacity of Chinese fir forests and their age had remained unclear until recently.
Researchers from the South China Botanical Garden under the Chinese Academy of Sciences chose a forest farm in south China's Guangdong Province and collected data on carbon storage and sequestration capacity of Chinese fir at the ages of five, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 60 years.
Results showed that carbon stock in trees, understory, vegetation, litter, soil, and ecosystem significantly increased with forest age. The total ecosystem carbon stock increased from 129.11 megagrams per hectare at five years of age to 348.43 at age 60.
The carbon sequestration rate of Chinese fir shows an overall increase in the first two age intervals of 5–10 and 10–15 years, peaks in the 15–20 age interval, and then decreases in the age intervals of 20–30 and 30–60 years.
The study found that the carbon sequestration rate of Chinese fir is a matter of age, with the highest rates occurring in the middle age of 15 to 20 years old.
According to Liu Juxiu, lead researcher of the study, the findings may be useful for national climate change mitigation actions and afforestation programs.
The study was published in the journal Science of The Total Environment. ■
