Carbon Content of Amazonian Commercial Tree Boles: Implications for Forest Management

Flora Magdaline Benitez Romero, Laércio Antônio Gonçalves Jacovine, Angélica de Cássia Oliveira Carneiro, Marcelo Vitor Gualberto Santos Chaves, Eronildo Braga Bezerra, Juan Pablo Sandoval Lafuente, Samuel José Silva Soares da Rocha, Maria Teresa Gomes Lopes and Philip Martin Fearnside ()
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Flora Magdaline Benitez Romero: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, Manaus 69067-375, Amazonas, Brazil
Laércio Antônio Gonçalves Jacovine: Departamento de Engenharia Florestal, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Viçosa 36570-900, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Angélica de Cássia Oliveira Carneiro: Departamento de Engenharia Florestal, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Viçosa 36570-900, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Marcelo Vitor Gualberto Santos Chaves: Departamento de Ciências Florestais, Universidade Federal de Lavras (UFLA), Lavras 37200-000, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Eronildo Braga Bezerra: Departamento de Engenharia Agrícola e Solos, Faculdade de Ciências Agrarias, Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Manaus 69077-000, Amazonas, Brazil
Juan Pablo Sandoval Lafuente: Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Naturales, Universidad Amazónica de Pando (UAP), Cobija 69932-000, Pando, Bolivia
Samuel José Silva Soares da Rocha: Departamento de Ciências Florestais, Universidade Federal de Lavras (UFLA), Lavras 37200-000, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Maria Teresa Gomes Lopes: Departamento de Produção Animal e Vegetal, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus 69077-000, Amazonas, Brazil
Philip Martin Fearnside: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936, Manaus 69067-375, Amazonas, Brazil

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 7, 1-17

Abstract: Reliable values for carbon content in trees are essential for quantifying forest carbon stocks and estimating carbon dioxide emissions. This study analyzed the carbon content in the boles of commercial tree species in the Brazilian state of Acre, in the southwestern Amazon. Composite samples were prepared from wood wedges obtained along each individual’s commercial bole (the trunk from the point of cut to the first significant branch). Fifty-seven trees were analyzed, spanning nine families, seventeen genera, and nineteen species in the Amazon forest. The results revealed a variation in carbon content ranging from 49.08% (±3.36) to 51.81% (±0.6), with an overall mean of 50.48% (±0.42). Handroanthus serratifolius , Astronium lecointei , and Dipteryx odorata exhibited the highest carbon contents. The statistical analysis included the calculation of 95% confidence intervals for each species, indicating the precision of the carbon content estimates. ANOVA analysis showed a large effect (η 2 = 0.83), indicating that 83% of carbon variability is due to species differences, highlighting the distinct carbon profiles across species. One species ( Ceiba pentandra ) showed a significant increase in carbon with height along the bole, while the others showed varying but non-significant trends with height. Mean carbon content differed significantly (Tukey’s post hoc test) among the 19 species studied, with the greatest difference between H. serratifolius and Ceiba pentandra . Although differences between species may seem small, in some cases, they can lead to considerable underestimations or overestimations of carbon stocks and emissions when extrapolated to large areas such as the Amazon. The mean carbon content measured in this study (50.48%) exceeds the 0.47 IPCC default value generally used in national reports to the Climate Convention and in various estimates of deforestation emissions and Amazon carbon stocks. This suggests that both emissions and stocks may have been underestimated.

Keywords: CO 2 emissions; Amazon rainforest; forest carbon; Acre; Brazil (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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