Volume 10, Issue 28, July - December, 2024

An overview of Carbon sequestration potential of Rubber tree plantations

Chinye S Mesike^♦, Suleman O Idoko

Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria, PMB 1049 Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

^♦Corresponding Author
Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria, PMB 1049 Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

Rubber trees capture atmospheric CO2 through photosynthesis, reduces Carbon (C) from the atmosphere and store it for several decades in the plant tissues as biomass. The central carbon pools in rubber plantation are biomass that are above ground, below ground and dead organic material. Sequestering atmospheric CO2 into longlived wood biomass through afforestation and reforestation is a vital tool to mitigate global warming and climate change. We reviewed the existing information of carbon stocks in rubber tree plantations considering the biomass above ground, biomass below ground, dead organic materials and latex harvested. Past studies on contributions of rubber plantations to climate change mitigation with focus on Carbon stocked in tree biomass above and below ground showed that rubber plantations constitute C stocks comparable to some agroforestry or forestry systems. However, the global Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions balance needs to consider the establishment of rubber plantations on previous land use.

Keywords: Carbon sequestration, carbon stock, rubber plantations, land uses, climate change mitigation

Climate Change, 2024, 10(28), e10cc1043

PDF

DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi.v10i28.e10cc1043

Published: 12 September 2024