Impact of Land Use Change on Vegetation Carbon Storage During Rapid Urbanization:A Case Study of Hangzhou,China

Land use changes have significant impacts on the carbon balance in an urban ecosystem.When there is rapid development in urbanizing regions,land use changes have a dramatic effect on vegetation carbon storage(VCS).This study investigates the impact of land use change on VCS in a period of rapid urbanization in Hangzhou,China.The results show that:1)from 2000 to 2015,land use in Hangzhou underwent huge changes,mainly reflected in decrease in cropland and wetland and the increased settlement.More than 34.58%of the land was transformed,and the land use changes are primarily characterized by a significant decrease in cropland due to the occupation by settlement.2)over the 15 years,changes in land use led to a decrease of 3.93×10^(5) t of VCS in the urban ecosystem.The large-scale transformation of cropland and wetland,which have a comparatively high carbon density,into land for settlement exerted a negative impact on VCS.3)The central city,which with the Circle-E/I/O mode,had the lowest comprehensive land use dynamic degree,leading to moderate land use change and an increase in VCS;Yuhang and Xiaoshan,which with Multicore-E/O/I mode and Fan-E/O/I modes,had a higher comprehensive land use dynamic degree,drastic changes in land use,and a decrease in VCS.This study proposes a reliable method of estimating changes in VCS,clarifies the relationship between land use change and VCS during rapid urbanization,and provides recommendations for sustainable urban development.

SOC storage and potential of grasslands from 2000 to 2012 in central and eastern Inner Mongolia, China

Grassland ecosystem is an important component of the terrestrial carbon cycle system. Clear comprehension of soil organic carbon（SOC） storage and potential of grasslands is very important for the effective management of grassland ecosystems. Grasslands in Inner Mongolia have undergone evident impacts from human activities and natural factors in recent decades. To explore the changes of carbon sequestration capacity of grasslands from 2000 to 2012, we carried out studies on the estimation of SOC storage and potential of grasslands in central and eastern Inner Mongolia, China based on field investigations and MODIS image data. First, we calculated vegetation cover using the dimidiate pixel model based on MODIS-EVI images. Following field investigations of aboveground biomass and plant height, we used a grassland quality evaluation model to get the grassland evaluation index, which is typically used to represent grassland quality. Second, a correlation regression model was established between grassland evaluation index and SOC density. Finally, by this regression model, we calculated the SOC storage and potential of the studied grasslands. Results indicated that SOC storage increased with fluctuations in the study area, and the annual changes varied among different sub-regions. The SOC storage of grasslands in 2012 increased by 0.51×1012 kg C compared to that in 2000. The average carbon sequestration rate was 0.04×1012 kg C/a. The slope of the values of SOC storage showed that SOC storage exhibited an overall increase since 2000, particularly for the grasslands of Hulun Buir city and Xilin Gol League, where the typical grassland type was mainly distributed. Taking the SOC storage under the best grassland quality between 2000 and 2012 as a reference, this study predicted that the SOC potential of grasslands in central and eastern Inner Mongolia in 2012 is 1.38×1012 kg C. This study will contribute to researches on related methods and fundamental database, as well as provide a reference for the protection of grassland ecosystems and the formulation of local policies on sustainable grassland development.