A Grand Plan for FIA’s role in a FS National Carbon Accounting System

1. A Grand Plan for FIA’s role in a FS National Carbon Accounting System Linda S. Heath USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station, FIA Forest Carbon Accounting and Research Durham, NH

2. SUMMARY POINTS •  Carbon stocks and CO2 change • Intensive-site measurements needed for overall FS C System • TPO/Utilization studies—Fate of carbon is keyt

3. Some accomplishments thus far.. • FIA-based estimates have been gold standard for forest carbon for over a decade in the US • --policy use, science community • Sustainability report, Heinz Center reports, Paper in Science (by Pacala et al.), Voluntary Reporting Program update, GHG inventories

4. Carbon Tools Web Page nrs.fs.fed.us/carbon/tools --Carbon Calculator Tool --FORCARB2

5. National GHG reporting to UNFCCC • •Annual Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and Sinks (1990-present) – US EPA • •Every 5 years, summary • national • communication • State Dept. • •USDA biennial

6. % contribution to CO2 inventory total sequestration for LULUCF, 2007

7. Guidance for GHG inventories evolves • Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (1994-1996) • IPCC Good Practice Guidance for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (2001-2003) • 2006 IPCC Revision Guidelines. Volume 4: AFOLU: Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Use

8. Sunset over the Indian Ocean, Mauritius

9. Primary equations • Carbon stock = area x carbon/area • CO2 change = ((Stock(t2)– Stock (t1))/(t2-t1))*3.66

10. Forest carbon stocks AND CO2 change (dynamics) are needed •  Carbon per acre, all forest pools • Change in C over time for GHG inventories (CO2 equivalents – CO2eq) • Area of forest, change in area of forest

11. C stocks per hectare by county

12. Flux data typically calculated at 30-minute intervals but aggregated to daily, monthly or annual values

13. Measurements from intensive-site techniques are essential --Provides interannual variability (for a “footprint” around tower) --Soil and forest floor flux --Per Acre Differences

14. System boundaries are key • Finland story • All managed lands and related activities? • All carbon pools (above, belowground)? • Fate of forest carbon beyond the forest • Trade (imports/exports) • Substitution?

15. Proposed Managed land in AK

16. •extent of forest land •volume, growth, and removal of forest resources; and •health and condition of the forest National program goals for FIA To conduct strategic forest inventories of the United States to estimate:

17. The FIA is basically a land based National Carbon Accounting System • Area, Area change • Ground plots– all pools • Harvested wood & products • --Utilization Studies • --Timber Products Output • Web based information systems • National Inventory & Monitoring Applications Center

18. FIA contribution to CO2 change estimates (GHG inventories) less strong • Emissions from dead wood? (not available yet!?) • Emissions/seq. in soil carbon? • Emissions from fire disturbances • Area change!

19. US forest estimates w/fire

20. Competitive advantages for FIA • We are the nation’s forest census • Data on carbon stocks • Focused on data and “users” • Technical expertise in measurements and math • What about the science community?

21. FIA and the Science Community • --FIA is in the R&D branch of the FS • --FS R&D personnel are covered under the FS Code of Scientific Ethics when conducting research

22. Priority improvements /Carbon estimates based on P3 data are documented and made available in tools and datasets /Biomass equations -- US wide sampling for biomass data, conducted w/ utilization studies? /Land Use-Land Cover and Change