Carbon dynamics in an <i>Imperata</i> grassland in Northeast India

<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:RelyOnVML /> <o:AllowPNG /> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-fareast-language: EN-IN; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA;" lang="EN-IN">Carbon stocks and soil CO₂flux were assessed in an <em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Imperata cylindrica</em> grassland of Manipur, Northeast India. Carbon stocks in the vegetative components were estimated to be 11.17 t C/ha and soil organic carbon stocks were 55.94 t C/ha to a depth of 30 cm. The rates of carbon accumulation in above-ground and below-ground biomass were estimated to be 11.85 t C/ha/yr and 11.71 t C/ha/yr, respectively. Annual soil CO₂ flux was evaluated as 6.95 t C/ha and was highly influenced by soil moisture, soil temperature and soil organic carbon as well as by C stocks in above-ground biomass. Our study on the carbon budget of the grassland ecosystem revealed that annually 23.56 t C/ha was captured by the vegetation through photosynthesis, and 6.95 t C/ha was returned to the atmosphere through roots and microbial respiration, with a net balance of 16.61 t C/ha/yr being retained in the grassland ecosystem. Thus the present <em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Imperata</em> grassland exhibited a high capacity to remove atmospheric CO₂ and to induce high C stocks in the soil provided it is protected from burning and overgrazing.</span></p><p><strong>Keywords:</strong> Above-ground biomass, below-ground biomass, carbon stocks, carbon storage, net primary productivity, soil CO₂ flux.</p><strong>DOI: </strong><a title="10.17138/TGFT(4)19-28" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.17138/TGFT(4)19-28" target="_blank">10.17138/TGFT(4)19-28</a><p> </p><p> </p>