The simulation research of carbon storage and sequestration potential of main forest vegetation in Yunnan Province

In present study,the current distribution of vegetation in Yunnan Province was compiled based on the data from remote:sensing imageries of ALOS from 2008 to 2011.The classification and regression trees (CART) model was used to predict the potential distribution of main forest types and to estimate the carbon storage and carbon sequestration potential of forest types in Yunnan.The results showed that total area of the forest in Yunnan was 20.11 million hectares and the forest coverage was 52.49%.The total carbon storage of current forest types was 871.14TgC similar to the result (812.30TgC) which was calculated by forest resources inventory.The carbon storage and sequestration changed by different types of forest vegetation.The higher carbon storage was found in the monsoon evergreen broad-leaved forest (205.42TgC) followed by the warm-temperate coniferous forest (172.72TgC) and the warm-hot coniferous forest (137.78TgC).Whereas,the warm-hot coniferous forest had the largest carbon sequestration potential (788.53TgC) followed by the warm-temperate coniferous forest (156.78TgC) and the temperate-cool coniferous forest (119.00TgC),which corresponded to 570%,90.77%,and 210.99% of their actual carbon storage,respectively.The total carbon sequestration potential of main forest vegetation in Yunnan was 1321.52TgC,corresponding to 152% of the actual carbon storage.In general,coniferous forest carbon sequestration potential was far more than that of broad-leaved forest in Yunnan.The carbon sequestration potential of warm-hot coniferous forests will increase under appropriate human disturbances in Yunnan.Warm-hot coniferous forests have high potential of clean development mechanism (CDM) in Yunnan.On the whole,the forest in Yunnan was a carbon sink.