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FOREST HARVESTS AND WOOD PRODUCTS: SOURCES AND SINKS OF ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE
Citation:
Winjum, J. K., S. Brown, AND B. Schlamadinger. FOREST HARVESTS AND WOOD PRODUCTS: SOURCES AND SINKS OF ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE. Forest Science 44(2):272-284, (1998).
Description:
Changes in the net carbon(c)sink-source balance related to a country's forest harvesting and use of wood products is an important component in making country-level inventories of greenhouse gas emissions,a current activity within many signatory nations to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.We propose two approaches for estimating national C inventories from forest harvesting and wood product utilization (excluding forest regrowth):the atmospheric-flow method and the stock-change method.The former has the atmosphere as its system of interest and counts all flows to and from the atmosphere for a particular country.The latter looks at a country's forest and wood product C stocks and how they change over time.Here we develop these two methods, and estimate national C source-sink balance from the readily available FAO global forest products database for countries, regions, and the world.Both methods gave a worldwide estimated source of 980 Tg of C in 1990 as a result of forest harvests and wood product utilization;about 60% came from developing countries and 40% from developed countries.Estimates(Tg C)for selected developing countries for the atmospheric-flow/stock-change method were:Brazil,72/73,India,81/80;Indonesia,53/56;and Ivory Coast,3.9/4.3;and for selected developed countries(again atmospheric-flow/stock-change method):Canada,36/50;Finland,8.8/13;New Zealand,2.7/3/4;and United States 141/138.Net wood exporters show lower numbers in the atmospheric-flow method,net wood importers in the stock change method.Among the variables that most consistently and strongly affected C emissions for a given country in 1990 were: roundwood production,slash left to oxidize,and commodity wood put into uses gtoreq 5 yr.We conclude with a discussion that shows how choosing either one of the two mehods for wood harvest accounting has potential policy implications or impacts on the incentives or disincentives to use wood.