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CDIAC: Difference between biomass in 1980 and 2000

Entry ID: CDIAC_TropicalAfricaWoodyBiomassCarbon1980-2000

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Summary

Abstract: Maps of biomass density are critical inputs for estimating carbon emissions from deforestation and degradation of tropical forests. Brown and Gatson (1996) pioneered methods to use GIS analysis to map forest biomass based on forest inventory data (ndp055). This database is an update of ndp055 (which represent conditions in circa 1980) and accounts for land cover changes occurring up to the year ... 2000.

This document describes the contents of a digital database containing maximum potential aboveground biomass, land use, and estimated biomass and carbon data for 1980. The biomass data and carbon estimates are associated with woody vegetation in Tropical Africa. These data were collected to reduce the uncertainty associated with estimating historical releases of carbon from land use change. Tropical Africa is defined here as encompassing 22.7 x 106 km2 of the earth's land surface and is comprised of countries that are located in tropical Africa (Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Benin, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau, Zimbabwe (Rhodesia), Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Burkina Faso (Upper Volta), Zaire, and Zambia).

The database was developed using the GRID module in the ARC/INFOTM geographic information system. Source data were obtained from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the U.S. National Geophysical Data Center, and a limited number of biomass-carbon density case studies. These data were used to derive the maximum potential and actual (ca. 1980) aboveground biomass values at regional and country levels. The land-use data provided were derived from a vegetation map originally produced for the FAO by the International Institute of Vegetation Mapping, Toulouse, France.

Analyses conducted with this database found that 18% of Tropical Africa was classified as closed forest and 36% was classified as open forest in 1980. Forested lands contained over 138 x 109 Mg of aboveground live biomass, which is equivalent to 69 x 109 Mg of carbon. Closed forests and open forests had mean aboveground biomass values of 209 Mg/ha and 67 Mg/ha, respectively, in 1980. These values are down from maximum potential aboveground live biomass values of 296 Mg/ha for closed forest and 108 Mg/ha for open forest.

Credit: Gibbs, H.K. and S. Brown. 2007.

Description: Tropical Africa: Land Use, Biomass, and Carbon Estimates for 1980, CDIAC/NDP055

Multimedia Sample

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Geographic Coverage

(Click for Interactive Map)

Spatial coordinates

N: 25.0

S: -30.0

E: 50.0

W: -20.0

Data Set Citation

Dataset Originator/Creator: Gibbs, H.K. and S. Brown

Dataset Title: Difference between biomass in 1980 and 2000

Dataset Release Date: 2007

Dataset Publisher: Carbon Dioxide Information and Analysis Center

Online Resource: http://cdiac.ornl.gov/epubs/ndp/ndp055/ndp055b.html

Temporal Coverage

Start Date: 1980-01-01

Stop Date: 2000-12-31

Location Keywords

CONTINENT > AFRICA

Science Keywords

BIOSPHERE > TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS > FORESTS

BIOSPHERE > VEGETATION > BIOMASS

ISO Topic Category

FARMING

BIOTA

Access Constraints None

Use Constraints None

Ancillary Keywords

AGRICULTURE

AIR POLLUTION

Data Set Progress

IN WORK

Originating Center

WRI

Data Center

World Resources Institute

Data Center URL: http://www.wri.org/

Data Center Personnel
Name: WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE Phone: 202-729-7600 Fax: 202-729-7610 Email: lorih at wri.org Contact Address: World Resources Institute 10 G Street, NE (Suite 800) City: Washington Province or State: DC Postal Code: 20002 Country: USA

Distribution

Distribution Media: book, CD

Distribution Format: Text

Distribution Media: online, html and pdf

Personnel

GENE R. MAJOR

Role: DIF AUTHOR

Email: gsfc-gcmduso at mail.nasa.gov

MAGGIE POWELL

Role: TECHNICAL CONTACT

Phone: 202-638-6300

Fax: 202-638-0036

Email: maggie at wri.org

Contact Address:

World Resources Institute

1709 New York Avenue NW

City: Washington

Province or State: DC

Postal Code: 20006

Country: USA

Publications/References

World Resources Institute, 2003. World Resources 2002-2004, Decisions
for the Earth: Balance, voice, and power World Resources Institute:
Washington, D.C. http://pubs.wri.org/pubs_description.cfm?PubID=3764

World Resources Institute, 2000. World Resources 2000-2001, People and
Ecosystems: The Fraying Web of Life, World Resources Institute:
Washington, D.C. ...

Creation and Review Dates

Last DIF Revision Date: 2012-10-17

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