Carbon Storage of Caimpugan Peatland in Agusan Marsh, Philippines and its Role in Greenhouse Gas Mitigation

V.L.B Alibo, 'Carbon Storage of Caimpugan Peatland in Agusan Marsh, Philippines and its Role in Greenhouse Gas Mitigation', Journal of Environmental Science and Management, vol. 15(2), pp.50-58, 2012

Globally, peatlands have a high potential in mitigating climate change, but no study has been done on this in the Philippines. This study estimated the amount of stored carbon (C) in the Caimpugan peatland, Agusan Marsh. In Tall Pole Forest, Intermediate Forest, and the Pygmy Forests in two locations in the peatland, the aboveground C stocks were measured in standing trees, understorey, herbaceous vegetation, and litter. In addition, belowground C stocks were also measured in peat soils at different horizons. Non-destructive sampling was done for trees > 5 cm dbh using allometric equations. Total soil organic C was determined using Flash Elemental Analyzer 1112 Series Carbon Analyzer. A two-way ANOVA was used to compare estimated stored C among selected vegetation types with location as the replication. The estimated aboveground C stock of Caimpugan peatland was 22.9 M t of C within its 5, 487 ha of area with an estimated 3,000-6,000 t of C on a per hectare basis. The estimated mean belowground C stock (4,659 t C ha-¹) was much higher than the mean aboveground C stock (53 tC ha-¹). With the substantial amount of stored C in Caimpugan peatland, its protection is fundamental to enhance its role in mitigating CO2 emissions