• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.12 no.8
• /
• pp.853-860
• /
• 2003

Plants sequester atmospheric CO$_2$, a major agent of climate change, during the growing periods and mitigate its rising accumulation in the atmosphere. Pinus densiflora and Quercus mongolica are the native tree species dominant in the temperate forests of Korea. This study quantified the annual CO$_2$ uptake by the two species at forest sites in Chuncheon in the middle of the country. The quantification was based on seasonal measurements of CO$_2$ exchange rates under natural conditions by an infrared gas analyzer over the growing season (1999). The monthly CO$_2$ uptake per unit leaf area ranged from 1.6-6.7 mg/d㎡/h for P. densiflora and from 3.7-8.9 mg/d㎡/h for Q. mongolica, with a maximum in mid-summer. An equation for each species was generated to estimate easily the annual CO$_2$ uptake by total leaf area per tree, which subtracted the CO$_2$ release (i.e. respiration) by leaves and woody organs from the gross CO$_2$ uptake (diurnal uptake and release by leaves). Annual CO$_2$ release by leaves and woody organs accounted for 58-73％ of the gross CO$_2$ uptake across tree specimens. Annual CO$_2$ uptake per tree increased with increasing dbh (stem diameter at breast height) for the study diameter range, and was greater for Q. mongolica than for P. densiflora in the same dbh sizes. This was mainly associated with a greater total leaf area in the former. For example, the annual CO$_2$ uptake by one tree with dbh of 25 cm was 35.6 kg/yr for P. densiflora and 47.9 kg/yr for Q. mongolica. The results from this study can be applied to evaluate an atmospheric CO$_2$ reduction of woody plants by forest type and age class.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.38-45
• /
• 2001

This study quantified annual $CO_2$, SO$_2$ and NO$_2$ uptake and annual $O_2$ production by trees in Yongin´s urban ecosystem, and explored values of urban tree plantings in atmospheric purification. Woody plant cover was only 7.7% with planting density of 1. trees/100$m^2$, and the tree-age structure was largely characterized by a young, growing tree population. Annual per capita pollutant emissions from fossil fuel consumption were 7.3t/yr for $CO_2$, 7.6kg/yr for SO$_2$, and 26.6kg/yr for NO$_{x}$. Carbon dioxide storage per unit urban area by trees was 13.1t/ha and the economic value for $CO_2$ storage was ￦6.6millions/ha. Annual atmospheric purification was 2.0t/ha/yr for $CO_2$ uptake, 2.0kg/ha/yr for SO$_2$ uptake, 4.0kg/ha/yr for NO$_2$ uptake and 1.5t/ha/yr for $O_2$ production, and the annual economic value for the atmospheric purification was ￦1.5millions/ha/yr. Urbantrees stored an amount of $CO_2$ equivalent to about 3.1% of the total annual $CO_2$ emissions, and annually offset total $CO_2$ emissions by 0.5%. Annual SO$_2$ and NO$_2$ uptake by trees equaled 0.5% of total SO$_2$ emissions and 0.3% of total NO$_{x}$ emissions, respectively. Urban trees also played an important role through producing annually 9.2 of the $O_2$ requirement for Yongin´s total population, despite relatively poor tree plantings. Future active plantings and greenspace enlargement in the study city could enhance the role of atmospheric purification by urban trees. The results from this study are expected to be useful in emphasizing environment benefits of urban trees, and in urging the continuous necessity for tree planting and management budget.get.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.38-53
• /
• 1998

This study quantified annual net carbon uptake by urban landscape trees and provided equations to estimate it for Ginkgo biloba, platanus occidentalis, Zelkova serrata and Acer palmatum, based on measurement of exchange rate for two years growing seasons from Sep., 1995 to Aug., 1997. The carbon uptake was significantly influenced by photosynthetic capacity, photon flux density and pruning. Ginkgo biloba showed the highest rate of net CO\sub 2\ uptake per unit leaf area and Acer palmatum did the lowest rate among those species. A tree shaded by adjacent building over the growing seasons showed net CO\sub2\ uptake per unit leaf area much lower than another tree of the same species less shaded. Annual net carbon uptake per tree was 19kg for Zelkova serrata, but only 1 kg for Ginkgo biloba and Platanus occidentalis with crown volume dwarfed from pruning. One Zekoval serrata tree annually offset carbon emission from consumption of about 32 liter of gasoline or 83 kWh of electricity. Strategies to improve CO\sub 2\ uptake by urban landscape trees include planting of species with high potosynthetic capacity, sunlight-guaranteed road and building layout for street trees, planting of shade-tolerant species in the north of buildings, and relocation of utility lines to underground and minimized pruning.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.24-34
• /
• 2019

Soil moisture regulates the fate of methane ($CH_4$) in forest soil via biological and chemical processes. The instant effect of variable precipitation on $CH_4$ uptake is, however, unclear in the forest ecosystems. Here, we measured $CH_4$ flux in a temperate forest soil immediately after variable volume of water applications equivalent to 10, 20 40, and $80mm\;m^{-2}day^{-1}$ precipitation. $CH_4$ uptake was significantly higher when the water was not applied. The $CH_4$ uptake decreased significantly with increasing water application. $CH_4$ uptake was linked with air filled porosity and water filled porosity. $CH_4$ uptake response to actual precipitation intensity was in agreement with $CH_4$ uptake results in this study. $CH_4$ uptake decreased 55% at highest precipitation intensity. Since annual $CH_4$ flux is calculated with interpolation of weekly or biweekly field observations, instant effect of precipitation can mislead the interpolated annual results.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
• /
• v.39 no.3
• /
• pp.119-127
• /
• 2023

In this study, quantitative models were applied to case parks to estimate the carbon reduction by trees, which was compared and analyzed at the tree and park levels. At the tree level, quantitative models of carbon storage and uptake differed by up to 7.9 times, even for the same species and size. At the park level, the carbon reduction from quantitative models varied by up to 3.7 times for the same park. In other words, carbon reduction by quantitative models exhibited considerable variation at the tree and park levels. These differences are likely due to the use of different growth environment coefficients and annual diameter at breast height growth rates and the overestimation of carbon reduction due to the substitution of the same genus and group model for each tree species. Extending the annual carbon uptake per unit area of the case park to the total park area of Chuncheon a carbon uptake ranging from a minimum of 370.4 t/yr and a maximum of 929.3 t/yr, and the difference can reach up to 558.9 t/yr. This is equivalent to the carbon emissions from the annual household electricity consumption of approximately 2,430 people. These results suggest that the indiscriminate application of quantitative models to estimate carbon reduction in urban trees can lead to significant errors and deviations in estimating carbon storage and uptake in urban greenspaces. The findings of this study can serve as a basis for estimating carbon reduction in urban greening research, projects, and policies.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.39-53
• /
• 1999

This study quantified carbon uptake and emissions in urban landscape, and the role of urban greenspace in atmospheric carbon reduction for several cities of Chuncheon and Kangleung in Kangwon province. Mean carbon storage by trees and shrubs was 26.0 t (mertric tons)/ha in Chuncheon and 46.7 t/ha in Kangleung for natural lands, and ranged from 4.7 to 6.3 t/ha for urban lands (all land use types except natural and agricultural lands) in both cities. Mean annual carbon uptake by trees and shrubs ranged from 1.60 to 1.71 t/ha/yr for natural lands, and from 0.56 to 0.71 t/ha/yr for urban lands. There was no significant difference (95% confidence level) between the two cities in the carbon storage and annual carbon uptake per ha, except the carbon storage for natural lands. Organic carbon storage in soils (to a depth of 60 cm) of Chuncheon average 24.8 t/ha for urban lands and 31.6 t/ha for natural lands, 1.3 times greater than for urban lands. Annual carbon accumulation in soils was 1.3 t/hr/yr for natural lands of the study cities. Annual per capita carbon emissions from fossil fuel consumption were 1.3 t/yr in Chunceon and 1.8 t/yr in Kangleung. The principal carbon release in urban landscapes was from transport and industry. Total carbon storage by urban greenspace (trees, shrubs, and soils) equaled 66% of total carbon emissions in Chuncheon and 101% in Kangleung. Carbon uptake by urban greenspace annually offset total carbon emissions by approximately 4% in the study cities. Thus, urban greenspace played a partial important role in reducing atmospheric $CO_2$ concentrations. To increase $CO_2$ uptake and storage by urban greenspace, suggested are conservation of natural lands, minimization of hard surfaces and more plantings, selection of tree species with high growth rate, and proper management for longer healthy tree growth.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.27 no.5
• /
• pp.38-47
• /
• 2000

Carbon dioxide is a major greenhouse gas causing climate change. This study quantified annual direct and indirect uptake of carbon by urban greenspace, and annual carbon release from vegetation maintenance and fossil fuel consumption. The study area was whole Chuncheon and Kangleung, and also two districts of Kangnam and Junglang in Seoul, cities located in middle Korea. Carbon uptake by urban greenspace played an important role through offsetting carbon release by 6-7% annually in Chuncheon and Kangleung. For Kangnam and Junglang, where the population density was relatively higher, urban greenspace annually offset carbon release by 1-2%. Future possible tree plantings could double annual carbon uptake by existing trees in urban lands (except natural and agricultural lands) of a study city. Based on study results, planning and management guidelines for urban greenspace were suggested to save energy and to reduce atmospheric $CO_2$ concentrations. They included selection of optimum tree species, proper planting location from buildings, design of multilayered planting, amendment of existing regulations for greenspace enlargement, avoidance f intensive vegetation maintenance, and conservation of natural vegetation.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.24 no.5
• /
• pp.591-600
• /
• 2010

We estimated and compared C storages and annual $CO_2$ uptakes by 9 dominant tree species planted along the streets. DBH and age by tree species were measured in the sites selected considering the planting status and distributions of tree species, and biomass, C storage, growth rate, and annual $CO_2$ uptake were estimated for each species. As a result, L. tulipifera, M. glyptostroboides, P. occidentalis were classified into fast-growing group, P. serrulata, G. biloba, Z. serrata, S. japonica, A. palmatum showed intermediate growth rates, and P. densiflora was slow-growing. Average C storage per tree was 205kgC/tree and ranged from 518kgC/tree(L. tulipifera) to 41kgC/tree(P. densiflora). Average annual $CO_2$ uptake by urban street trees over their lifespan ranged from $7.6kgCO_2$/tree/y to $99.1kgCO_2$/tree/y and L. tulipifera was the greatest, followed by glyptostroboides and P. occidentalis, and P. densiflora was the lowest. Total annual $CO_2$ uptake by all street trees in Gyeonggi-do, estimated based on the annual $CO_2$ uptake by each species, was as small as approximately 0.67% of that by forest in Gyeonggi-do. However, urban trees are still important because forest area continues to decrease and urbanization occurs annually in Gyeonggi-do, and should be managed considering their multi-functional aspects, including mitigation of heat island effect and building energy saving(indirect $CO_2$ uptake).

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
• /
• v.35 no.4
• /
• pp.240-247
• /
• 2019

This study quantified carbon reduction services through direct harvesting of Ilex rotunda and Machilus thunbergii, which are the typical urban landscape tree species in southern Korea. A total of 20 open-grown tree specimens (10 specimens for each species) were selected reflecting various sizes of stem diameter at breast height of 1.2 m (DBH) at a regular interval. The study measured biomass for each part of the tree specimens including roots to compute total carbon storage per tree. Annual carbon uptake per tree was also calculated analyzing the DBH growth rate of stem disk specimens. Quantitative models were developed using DBH as an independent variable to easily estimate storage and annual uptake of carbon by tree growth for each species. All the models had a high goodness-of-fit with R²=0.95-0.99. The difference in carbon reduction services between DBH sizes increased with increasing DBH. The storage and annual uptake of carbon from a tree with DBH of 10 cm were 13.5 kg and 2.4 kg/yr for I. rotunda, and 19.1 kg and 3.6 kg/yr for M. thunbergii, respectively. The tree of this size stored the amount of carbon equivalent to that emitted from a gasoline use of approximately 24 L for I. rotunda and 34 L for M. thunbergii, respectively. The study provides actual measurement data to quantify carbon reduction services of urban open-grown landscape trees for the warm-temperate species that have been little known until now.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
• /
• v.42 no.5
• /
• pp.64-72
• /
• 2014

This study quantified the storage and annual uptake of carbon by apple trees in orchards as a production-type greenspace, and computed the annual carbon emissions from apple cultivation. Tree individuals in the study orchards were sampled to include the range of stem diameter sizes. The study measured biomass for each part including the roots of sample trees through a direct harvesting method to compute total carbon storage per tree. Annual carbon uptake per tree was quantified by analyzing the radial growth rates of stem samples at ground level. Annual carbon emissions from management practices such as pruning, mowing, irrigation, fertilization, and use of pesticides and fungicides were estimated based on maintenance data, interviews with managers, and actual measurements. Regression models were developed using stem diameter at ground level (D) as an independent variable to easily estimate storage and annual uptake of the carbon. Storage and annual uptake of carbon per tree increased as D sizes got larger. Apple trees with D sizes of 10 and 15 cm stored 9.1 and 21.0 kg of carbon and annually sequestered 1.0 and 1.6 kg, respectively. Storage and annual uptake of carbon per unit area in study orchards were 3.81 t/ha and 0.42 t/ha/yr, respectively, and annual carbon emissions were 1.30 t/ha/yr. Thus, the carbon emissions were about 3 times greater than the annual carbon uptake. The study identified management practices to reduce the carbon footprint of production-type greenspace, including efficient uses of water, pesticides, fungicides, and fertilizers. It breaks new ground by including measured biomass of roots and a detailed inventory of carbon emissions.