Changes in vegetation cover and carbon stock in central South America: an analysis using field data and remote sensing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29150/jhrs.v12.4.p138-153Keywords:
Cerrado, Chaco, carbon emissions, dry forests, Pantanal, remote sensingAbstract
A região central da América do Sul, onde está localizada a Bacia do Alto Paraguai (UPRB), é considerada um dos maiores reservatórios de carbono acima do solo do planeta. No entanto, a superfície ocupada por essas formações vem diminuindo consideravelmente o que requer ações estratégicas para preservar esses recursos. Nesse contexto, o presente estudo teve como objetivo estimar o estoque de carbono em formações florestais e savânicas da UPRB, analisando as variações ocorridas nos anos de 2013 e 2018, utilizando dados de campo, sensoriamento remoto e geoprocessamento. A abordagem proposta para a área trinacional da bacia é inédita e possibilitou quantificar o carbono na vegetação da UPRB, mostrando uma redução de 3,69% no estoque, o que equivale a aproximadamente 78,5 milhões de MgC emitidos na atmosfera durante o período analisado.6 , -37 x 10 6 e -7,2 x 10 6 MgC, respectivamente, enquanto o Mato Grosso do Sul (Brasil) apresentou um aumento de 8 x 10 6 no estoque de carbono. Dos 108 municípios avaliados, 48 apresentaram variação positiva no estoque de carbono aéreo. O mapeamento das variações de carbono na UPRB permitiu localizar onde devem ser implementadas ou intensificadas atitudes de redução de emissões por desmatamento e mudanças na cobertura da terra. Assim, a aplicação da metodologia proposta pode servir como um dos parâmetros para determinar as variações no estoque de carbono aéreo na região de pesquisa.
Changes in vegetation cover and carbon stock in central South America: an analysis using field data and remote sensing
Abstract
The central region of South America, where the Upper Paraguay River Basin (UPRB) is located, is considered to be one of the largest above ground carbon reservoirs on the planet. However, the surface occupied by these formations has been decreasing considerably which requires strategic actions to preserve these resources. In this context, the present study aimed to estimate the carbon stock in forest and savanna formations of UPRB, analyzing the variations that occurred in the years 2013 and 2018, using field data, remote sensing and geoprocessing. The proposed approach for the tri-national area of the basin is unprecedented and made it possible to quantify carbon in the UPRB vegetation, showing a reduction of 3.69% in the stock, which is equivalent to approximately 78.5 million MgC emitted into the atmosphere during the analyzed period. The portion of the watershed inside Bolivia, Paraguay and Mato Grosso (Brazil) showed negative variations of -42.3x106, -37x106 and
-7.2x106 MgC, respectively, while Mato Grosso do Sul (Brazil) showed an increase of 8x106 in the carbon stock. The aboveground carbon stock varied positively in 48 out of the 108 municipalities examined. The mapping of carbon variations in the UPRB allowed us to locate where attitudes towards reducing emissions from deforestation and changes in land cover should be implemented or intensified. Thus, the application of the proposed methodology can serve as one of the parameters for determining the variations in aboveground carbon stock in the research region.
Keywords: Cerrado; Chaco; carbon emissions; dry forests; Pantanal; remote sensing.
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