Impacts of land use on carbon storage and assimilation rates

A major contributor to global warming is the increasing amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Land use management may be a means to countering global warming by increasing the carbon sink potential. Terrestrial carbon budgets were prepared for forested (Douglas-fir), agricultural (hay), and urban sites in Abbotsford, B.C. The results indicate that the greatest amount of carbon is stored in the forested sites, followed by the hay sites, with the lowest amount in the urban sites. To maximize carbon in storage the use of trees either as forests or in pockets within the landscape is the best option. To simulate and to expand the utility of these carbon budgets, the study used the CENTURY model. The results of the simulations indicate that forests are a major carbon sink as was found earlier. Carbon storage under hay is at a relative steady state, except during the cultivation years when it becomes a carbon source. Lawn in an urban setting is a carbon source. The results of the simulations suggest that management can be used to increase the carbon sink. It also indicates that soils are a major carbon pool representing 20% of the forest, 90% of the hay, and 95% of the lawn budgets. For the general public and decision-makers to become more aware of the impact of changing land use on carbon storage, at the lot, local, or regional levels, they require a userfriendly decision-making tool. A derivative of the CENTURY model, CLU (for CENTURY Land Use), was developed. It was designed to be user-friendly and at the same time maintain the integrity of the parent model. It allows the user to input site-specific data and obtain site related output carbon data on a component basis, which can be used to assess how a potential change in land use or management may affect the amount of carbon in storage. The model should be suitable as a research tool and for planning and educational purposes.Science, Faculty ofResources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), Institute forGraduat