Carbon Sequestration Potential of Teak Plantations of Kerala

Carbon storage potential of teak plantation was estimated by studying plantations in\nNilambur undergoing prescribed thinning schedules. Nilambur in Kerala State has\nthe reputation of establishing the first teak plantation in India. The area has a\nhumid tropical climate with around 300 cm annual rainfall received from the two\nmonsoons. The soil is well drained coarse textured oxisol with high content of\nsesquioxides. An average teak tree at Nilambur was found to attain a height of 6.93\nm and dbh of 6.3 cm at 5 year which was seen to increase to 22.83 m and 45.85 cm,\nrespectively at the final felling stage of 50 years. Biomass was found to increase from\n65.38 kg tree-1 at the first stage to 1085.70 kg tree-1 at the final stage of felling.\nSignificant increase in growth and biomass production was noted after 30th year of\nplantation.Carbon sequestration in various compartments of teak followed the pattern bole >\nbranch > root > bark in the initial stages and bole > root > branch > bark in the\nlatter stages. Carbon sequestration increased with age and at 50 years 332.88 kg tree-\n1 carbon was found to be stored in bole, 60.63 in branch, 80.06 in root and 26.57 kg\ntree-1 in bark compartment giving a total of 508.14 kg tree-1 of carbon.Allometric models to predict carbon sequestration with height and dbh as\nindependent variable and carbon sequestered as dependent variable were tested to\nobtain the best fit model. The best regression model for predicting carbon sequestered\nin the bole compartment was √Y = 1.502 + 0.344 D, that for bark √Y = 1.163 + 0.082\nD, for branch ln Y =1.308 lnD-1.116, for root √Y = 0.858 + 0.170 D, for above ground\ncompartment √Y = 2.113 + 0.379 D and that for predicting the total carbon\nsequestered in the teak in all its vegetative parts was √Y = 2.289 + 0.415 D.\nCarbon sequestration potential of teak plantations in Kerala was calculated based on\nthe estimated carbon sequestration at prescribed felling stages and the area\nprescribed for felling in 2014. The calculated figure was 0.21 million tons of carbon\nwhich was equivalent to Certified Emission Reduction (CER) potential of 0.81\nmillion units corresponding to 61.48 crores of rupees at current exchange rates