Carbon Sequestration in Medlterranean Oak Forests

Abstract

The objective of this chapter is to present sorne of the studies currently being carried out in Spain and Portugal which are concerned with the possibility of estimating the amount of carbon flxed by two of the main oak species in the lberian Peninsula; rebollo oak (Quercus pyrenaica Willd.) and cork oak (Quercus suber L.). Three different methodological approaches have been used. The first approach is to use growth models to evaluate the carbon sequestration in both cork and wood over the life of a cork oak plantation.This approach has been applied both for Spain and Portugal. The second approach involves using a yield table as a tool to estímate the carbon sequestration in Quercus pyrenaica forests based on Spanish National Forest lnventories. In a third approach, data from a network of plots is used to estímate the carbon sequestration in pure and mixed Quercus pyrenaica forests. The application of these different methodologies would allow us to forecast and improve the carbon sequestration in lberian oak forests as well as increase our understanding of their dynamics.