Ecosystem functioning and services


Above ground carbon

Indicator unit: The above-ground carbon (AGC) is expressed in Mg (megagrams or tonnes) of carbon per km2 . It corresponds to the carbon fraction of the oven-dry weight of the woody parts (stem, bark, branches and twigs) of all living trees, excluding stump and roots, as estimated by the GlobBiomass project (globbiomass.org) with 2017 as the reference year.

Below ground carbon

Indicator unit: The belowground biomass carbon (BBC) is expressed in Mg (megagrams or tonnes) of carbon per km2 . It represents an estimation of the carbon stored in the roots of all living trees. This carbon pool is calculated as a fraction of the aboveground biomass carbon stock using root-to-shoot ratios (R). It is derived from two main data sources: the global aboveground biomass map produced by the GlobBiomass project (globbiomass.org) and the 2019 Refinement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (IPCC, 2019).

Carbon Storage in Mangrove Forests

Mangroves provide both climate change mitigation and adaptation services. They provide benefits for coastal communities and they are among the most effective carbon-capture ecosystems. If they are degraded or cleared, the carbon stored will be released into the atmosphere as CO2 and it will exacerbate climate changes.

Soil organic carbon

Indicator unit: Amount of carbon stored in the soil (0 to 30 cm depth), expressed in Mg (megagrams or tonnes) per km2.

Area of interest: The SOCI has been calculated at the country level, terrestrial ecoregion level and for all protected areas and is provided for each country and each terrestrial and coastal protected area of size ≥ 1 km2.

Total carbon

Indicator unit:  Amount of carbon stored in the soil (0 to 30 cm depth), expressed in Mg (megagrams or tonnes) per km2 .

Area of interest The SOCI has been calculated at the country level and for all protected areas and is provided and  for each country, each terrestrial ecoregion and each terrestrial and coastal protected area of size ≥ 1 km2.

Policy question: There are two main policy questions to which the SOCI indicator is relevant:

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