Analyzing carbon stocks in a mediterranean forest enterprise: A case study from Kizildag, Turkey

Carbon dioxide is one of the most important greenhouse gases responsible for global climate change. Terrestrial ecosystems are widely recognized as useful mechanisms, as they store large quantities of carbon in their bodies. In this context, the present study aims at analyzing carbon stocks in forest (both productive and degraded), grassland, and agricultural ecosystems of Kizildag Planning Unit. To this end, forest inventory data, published statistics, and GIS tools were used for modeling carbon densities of these three ecosystems in a spatially explicit manner. Moreover, carbon contents were estimated for different pools including above- and below-ground biomass, litter layer, deadwood, and soil components. Results showed that a total of nearly 3.5 million tons of carbon stored in the entire study area. When standardized to per unit area, productive and degraded forests stocked the most significant amounts followed by grassland and cropland land use/land cover (LULC) classes. The average density was 120.8 tons ha-1 for productive forests, while it was 32.3 tons ha-1 for croplands. The vast majority of these amounts stocked in soil pools for each LULC classes. Therefore, special attention should be paid for soil carbon studies which are very rare in the region. Regarding spatial distribution, Kizildag showed a rather non-homogeneous pattern in terms of carbon densities. Hotspots generally accumulated in the southwestern parts, as well as near the east border of the study area. Carbon densities could be as high as 200-245 tons ha-1 in these hotspots. Those areas were dominated by mixed stands of Taurus fir, cedar, and black pine at older ages and they were designated primarily for protective functions in the forest management plan. It is concluded that vast degraded forestlands in the region offer great opportunities to forest managers as an effective mechanism in combatting climate change. Therefore, rehabilitation, afforestation, and forest protection activities should be accelerated as possible

Forest fire influence on microbial biomass of forest soils: a review

Microbial biomass is one of the important companent of the C and N cycling in soil. It directly affects soil biological activity. Being a storage medium for C and N, microbial biomass, interacts many biotic and abiotic environmental factors. Forest fires affect soil microbial biomass as other soil properties do. In this study, a general evaluation was made on the effects of forest fire on soil microbial biomass. In general, the effect of forest fire on soil microbial biomass is negative. Both natural and prescribed fires affect soil microbial carbon but the magnitude of the effect is larger in natural fires. This effect could be negative or positive in short term, but in long term the effect is mainly negative. The fire effected upper soil is generally adversly affected while the deeper soil is affected positively. Fire effect on microbial biomass should be evaluated considering climate and the other ecosystem companents all together

Short term effects of prescribed fire on soil microbial biomass of black pine forests

In this study, we were examined of changes microbial carbon (MBC) and microbial Nitrogen (MBN) after one month controlled fire. The study area consist of sloping and flat areas, high and low intensity of burnt areas and control areas (unburned) including (flat low intensity: FLI, flat high intensity: FHI, smooth low intensity: SLI, smooth high intensity: SHI and 0-5 cm and 5-10 cm depth soil). In terms of microbial carbon on the upper soil in the flat high intensity and upper and lower soil in the smooth high intensity, there was a significant differences between burning and unburning area. Also, microbial carbon has been reduced approximately 50 % in the burning area. İn terms of microbial nitrogen has been found a significant reduction between upper and lower soil in the smooth low intensity area. However, we found a significant increase in the lower soil on smooth high intensity area. With regard to microbial carbon were found a significant differences between the intensity of the effect of low and high fire in burning areas. There were a significant relationship between microbial carbon and microbial nitrogen and also organic matter. Microbial carbon was also found a positive correlation with Ph (?<0,05). As a result, in the short term of fire reducing of microbial biomass on the top soil (0-5 cm). In addition, microbial nitrogen was increased and microbial carbon was reduced after fire. Additionaly, after fire microbial nitrogen was increasing in the lower soil and microbial biomass may decrease the usability of the organic karbon

Okul müdürlerinin maarif müfettişlerine ilişkin görüşlerinin meteforik olarak incelenmesi (Denizli İli Merkezefendi İlçesi Örneği)

Bu çalışmanın amacı; okul müdürlerinin maarif müfettişlerine ilişkin görüşlerinin metaforik olarak incelenmesidir. Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı Rehberlik ve Denetim başkanlığının 2015 yılında çıkarmış olduğu ‘’Rehberlik ve Araştırma Merkezleri Rehberlik ve Denetim Rehberi ile köklü bir değişikliğe gidilmiş olup Maarif Müfettişlerinin ders denetimleri okul müdürlerine devredilmiştir. Bu rehber ile her yıl yapılan rehberlik ve denetimin üç yılda bir olması ve derinlemesine inceleme yapılması amaçlanmıştır. Okul müdürlerinin Maarif müfettişlerine ilişkin duygu ve düşüncelerini ortaya koymak için Denizli ili Merkezefendi ilçesinde 40 okul müdürüne yöneltilen Açık uçlu soru ‘’Maarif müfettişleri …..gibidir. Çünkü……..’dır’’ . sorusuna verilen cevaplama yoluyla araştırmanın verileri toplanmıştır. Okul müdürleri toplam 62 metafor üretmişledir. Araştırmanın sonucuna göre okul müdürlerinin üretmiş oldukları metaforların genellikle olumlu benzetmelerden oluşan metaforlar olduğu görülmüştür. Üretilen metaforların 43 tanesi olumsuz, 12 tanesi hem olumlu hem olumsuz, 5 tanesi ise olumlu düzeyde anlam yüklü metaforlar üretmiştir. Okul müdürlerinden 2 tanesi ise okul ve ders denetiminin gereksiz olduğunu ve maarif müfettişleri kavramının kaldırılması gerektiğini belirten metafor üretmişlerdir. Okul müdürleri maarif müfettişlerine yönelik en çok; ‘’Adil, ciddi, olumsuz düşünen, empati kuramayan, can yakmaya çalışan’’ metaforlarını üretmişlerdir

Litter decomposition in burned corsican pine stands in Turkey

This study was carried out to determine the effects of forest fire on litter decomposition in Corsican pine (P. nigra) stands. The study is located in Vezirkopru Forest area in Samsun, Turkey. We made measurements of litter decomposition in 80 to 100 years old stands subjected to prescribed burning. Measurements were made between November, 2013 and October, 2014. 20x20 cm litter bags were placed on soil surface and collected in July and October. Sampling time had significant effect on litter decomposition (P 0.05)

The investigation of forest fire on soil respiration

We investigated the effect of forest fire disturbance on soil respiration. This study was conducted in Vezirkopru Forest area of Samsun Province, Turkey. We made measurements of soil respiration, soil moisture and soil temperature in the 80 to 100 years old larch stand by controlled burning. Measurements were made between November, 2013 and October, 2014. As a result of the measurement of soil respiration; was found statistically significant effect on soil moisture and soil temperature by time. There were not significant differences between fire and control area with regard to variables of fire intensity and slope (P> 0.05). In general, soil respiration had negative relationship with soil moisture and positive relationship with soil temperature (P <0.05). Soil respiration increases depending on the fire intensity. Soil respiration ranged from 2.63 to 0.94 g C m-2 gün-1

Nitrogen mineralization in burned corsican pine stands

This study was carried out to determine the effects of fire on the nitrogen mineralization. The study was conducted in Vezirkopru Forest area of Samsun Province, Turkey. We made measurements of nitrogen mineralization in 80 to 100 years old Corsican pine(P. nigra) stands subjected to prescribed burning. Measurements were made between November, 2013 and October, 2014. There was no significant difference between burned and control areas in nitrogen mineralization except total N mineralization in 5-10 cm soil depth. The effect of sampling time on the amount of total N mineralization were found to be significant except NH4 mineralization in 5-10 cm depth (P <0.05). The effect of the fire intensity on N mineralization was not significant (P <0.05). We found significant slope factor effect in burned sites in N mineralization (P <0.05), but this effect was not significant in the control sites. N mineralization in the sites with 20-30% slope were lower than N min. in the flat areas in the burned sites, but this was opposite in the control sites. The mean total N mineralization in flat sites were 33,3 kg/ha in burned sites and 32,4 kg/ha in control sites. In the areas with slope, mean total N mineralization were 24,9 kg/ha in burned and 41,1 kg/ha in control sites

Evaluation of Artvin-Murgul black locust plantations in terms of biomass production, carbon storage, soil quality improvement and erosion control compared to adjacent grassland areas

Black locust plantations in Artvin-Murgul (established in 1996) were investigated for the purposes of: 1) wood production, 2) above- and belowground biomass, 3) carbon storage, 4) soil quality improvement, 5) erosion control and economic value. For these purposes, soil samples were taken from black locust plantation sites and adjacent grassland (control) sites, and soil respiration, soil infiltration, surface runoff, sediment removal, water holding capacity, soil organic matter, texture, pH, N, P, K, Ca, and Mg contents were determined in both areas. Sample trees were cut to determine aboveground biomass and carbon storage. Root samples were taken to determine root biomass and root carbon storage. Surface runoff and erosion were five-fold lower in black locust stands compared to controls (grasslands). Soil quality improvements in black locust areas were not significantly higher than in grasslands. Grasslands had higher soil respiration rates compared to black locust areas. Soil organic matter did not differ significantly between grasslands and black locust areas. Above- and belowground carbon storage were higher in black locust areas than in grassland

Application of soil water assessment tool (SWAT) to suppress wildfire at Bayam Forest, Turkey

Authors would like to thank the Central Finance and Contracts Unit (CFCU) in TURKEY and the EU INTERREG IV "Black Sea Basin Joint Operational Programme 2007-2013" framework that funded this project. In addition. we would like the staff members of the Kastamonu Regional Directorate of Forestry. Yasar Cakiroglu, Muzaffer Buyukterzi and Hidayet Kavi for their generous help and support.Aim: Readily available water resources are a key for wildfire suppression. Hydrologic models are a practical and essential tool for understanding the processes of hydrology and managing water resources, but have not been utilized as frequently for wildfire suppression. The goal of the present study was to use the Soil WaterAssessment Tools (SWAT) model to determine whether the stream water could be managed sustainably in wildfire suppression at the Bayam Forest District in Kastamonu Province, Turkey. Methodology: As an input file, the SWAT model used soils, land-uses, weather data and morphology of watershed based on the Digital Elevation Model (DEM). The model was applied for period 2001-2013 in order to predict the water budget of the study area and major streams within the studied district. Results: The analysis of the hydrologic water budget indicated that 70% (573.8 mm) of the annual precipitation (822 mm) was lost as evapotranspiration in the basin, whereas 19%, 34% and 47% of the remaining total water yield (234.6 mm) contributed to streams via surface runoff, groundwater flow and lateral flow, respectively. Interpretation: Overall, the result of SWAT model indicated to a certain degree promising findings on the availability of stream water and optimal placement of water reservoir for the use of wildfire suppression

Determination and modelling of above ground and below ground carbon contents in forest, grassland and agriculture areas with association by using satallite images in some sub-basins of Artvin, Erzurum and Bayburt

YÖK Tez No: 483548Bu çalışmada Çoruh Nehri Havzasının 11 alt mikro havzalarında verimli orman, boşluklu kapalı orman, tarım ve mera alanlarında toprak altı ve toprak üstü karbon miktarlarının belirlenerek uydu görüntüleri ile ilişkilendirilmesi ve modellenmesi amaçlanmıştır. Çalışma kapsamında mera alanlarında toprak üstü biyokütleyi belirlemek için 49, toprak karbonunu belirlemek için 666 ve toprak altı biyokütleyi belirlemek için 299 farklı noktadan toplam 1196 adet kök örneklemesi yapılmıştır. Diğer arazi kullanımlarındaki biyokütle ve karbon miktarlarının hesaplanmasında literatürde var olan katsayılardan yararlanılmıştır. Verimli ve boşluklu kapalı orman alanlarındaki yıllık net biyokütle miktarlarının tahmin edilmesi için uydu görüntülerine atılan rastgele noktaların yansıma değerleri ile regresyon denklemleri geliştirilmiştir. Çalışma sonucunda, mera alanlarındaki toprak üstü biyokütle miktarının belirlenmesi için geliştirilen modelin belirtme katsayısı 0,72'dır. Toprak üstü karbon miktarları 0,48 ton/ha ile 0,94 ton/ha arasında, toprak altı karbon miktarları ise 1,70 ton/ha ile 2,76 ton/ha arasında bulunmuştur. Arazide ölçülmüş olan toprak üstü biyokütle değerleri uydu görüntüsü yansıma değerleri ile ilişkilendirilerek R2=0,67 ile R2= 0,8 arasında değişen regresyon denklemleri geliştirilmiştir. Verimli ve boşluklu kapalı orman alanlarındaki yıllık net biyokütle üretim miktarları ise geliştirilen denklemler ile R2= 0,62 ile R2= 0,8 oranları arasında olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Tarım alanlarındaki toplam karbon miktarı 467.997 ton olarak hesaplanmıştır. Toplam biyokütle miktarı ise 6.803.967 ton, toplam karbon miktarı (toprak karbonu dahil) 14.589.276 ton olduğu ve hektardaki karbon miktarının 31,3 ton/ha ile 121,6 ton/ha arasında değiştiği görülmüştür. Toplam yıllık net karbon üretim miktarı ise 139.852 ton olup hektarda 0,26 ton/ha ile 0,67 ton/ha arasında değiştiği bulunmuştur. Bulgulara göre, karbon etkinlik değeri hesaplanarak sıralamanın en iyiden kötüye doğru verimli orman, boşluklu kapalı orman, tarım ve mera şeklinde olduğu görülmüştür. Toprak üstü biyokütle miktarlarının uydu görüntüsü verileri yardımıyla etkili bir şekilde tahmin edilebileceği görülmüştür.In the present study, it was aimed to determine above and below ground carbon contents in some land uses of 11 sub-basins in the Coruh River Basin using satellite images. For this, 49 samples were taken for above ground biomass (AGB), 1196 root samples from 299 different points for below ground biomass (BGB) and 666 samples for soil carbon in the grassland areas. Biomass and carbon contents in other land uses were calculated using related coefficients in the literature. The reflectance values of satellite images were used to develop regression models and thus to estimate the annual net biomass amounts in productive and degraded forest. The coefficient of determination (R2) of regression model for the AGB was found to be 0,72 based on ecological factors in grassland areas. Similarly, R2 values of the developed models for the AGB based on satellite images were between 0,67 to 0,80. On the other hand, above ground carbon (AGC) and below ground carbon (BGC) contents ranged from 0,48 ton/ha to 0,94 ton/ha and 1,70 ton/ha to 2,76 ton/ha, respectively. Moreover, annual net biomass productions in the productive and degraded forest were modeled using satellite images with R2 values between 0,62 and 0,80. The total amount of carbon in agricultural areas was calculated as 467.997 tons. The total biomass, total amount of carbon (including soil carbon) and the annual net carbon production were 6.803.967, 14.589.276 and 139.852 tons, respectively. The carbon contents for the unit area changed from 31,3 tons/ha to 121,6 tons/ha. Total annual net carbon production was calculated as 139.852 tons and the unit values were between 0.26 ton/ha and 0.67 ton/ha. Finally, the carbon efficiency values were calculated for the all land uses. It was seen that the performance ranking for the land use classes in terms of carbon efficiency were productive forest, degraded forest, agriculture and grassland. In conclusion, this study suggests that AGB contents can be effectively estimated using remote sensing data