Carbon Storage and Nutrient Stocks Distribution of Three Adjacent Land Use Patterns in Lake Danao National Park, Ormoc, Leyte, Philippines
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Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology 5:1-14 (2017) Southern Leyte State University, Sogod, Southern Leyte, Philippines Carbon Storage and Nutrient Stocks Distribution of Three Adjacent Land Use Patterns in Lake Danao National Park, Ormoc, Leyte, Philippines Pearl Aphrodıte Bobon-Carnıce1* Suzette B. Lına2 1Natural Sciences Department Eastern Visayas State University Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines 2Department of Soil Science, College of Agriculture and Food Science Visayas State University Visca, Baybay City, Philippines Abstract The country experienced drastic decrease of forest cover due to land use conversion, cutting of trees and doing agriculture to support food security. Secondary forests are an important component of land cover in the tropics, and when transformed or converted into another land-use, it is believed to have negative effects on some soil properties and forest ecosystem in general. A paired-area/space-for-time substitution approach was conducted to determine the changes in carbon storage: soil organic carbon (SOC) and total above ground biomass (TAGB), soil nutrient stocks and fertility status due to land use change. The study was conducted in Lake Danao National Park (LDNP), Ormoc City, Leyte, Philippines. Adjacent to the secondary forest (<1 km away), grassland and forest plantation land uses were chosen and sampled for possible changes on SOC, TAGB and nutrient stocks due to land use change. Results showed that conversion of forest to grassland and forest plantation decreased the organic carbon, exchangeable aluminum, exchangeable acidity, effective cation exchange capacity, TAGB while pH in H2O; exchangeable magnesium and potential cation exchange capacity increased when the forest was converted to grassland and forest plantation. Additionally, available P, base saturation, Ca, K, and Na increased while total N, and SOC stocks decreased when the forest was converted to grassland and forest plantation. This study indicates that conversion of forest to grassland and forest plantation greatly affected the SOC stocks, TAGB, soils nutrient stocks and fertility status. It also revealed that changes in soil properties largely depended upon the land use. Keywords: Andisol; forest plantation; grassland; organic carbon; secondary forest; total aboveground biomass Introduction marked effect on the interactions in detrital inputs, perturbations of the ecosystem and could have an associated change in C Terrestrial ecosystem is the major reservoir stocks and fluxes (Bolin and Sukumar, 2000; of carbon (C) in which its amount in the soil Lal, 2005). Such changes are important is greater than that in the living vegetation from the standpoint of desired soil quality, (Post et al., 2000). Anthropogenic activities sustainability, and on their influence on the such as changing the land use can have a *Correspondence: [email protected]; ORCID: 0000-0002-3622-0449 ISSN 2545-9732 Carnıce and Lina JSET Vol.5, 2017 atmospheric CO2 concentrations and global under secondary forest transformations in warming (Lal, 2004). However, understanding LNDP and related the SOC stocks with the of the estimation of carbon as part of the global aboveground biomass. carbon cycle in general, and understanding of soil carbon dynamics is still limited. Methodology There are few reported studies on the mechanisms and factors controlling the The Study Site stability of soil organic carbon (SOC) as affected by anthropogenic activity in the The study was conducted in LDNP, Ormoc tropics (Paul et al., 2008). However, there are City, Leyte (Figure 1) where the secondary only few studies that have been conducted forest is still preserved and intact and has an yet in the Philippines particularly in Leyte adjacent grassland and forest plantation site. province concerning the quantification of A paired-area or space-for-time substitution SOC under secondary forest transformations, approach (Paul et al., 2008; Asio, 1996; despite their large SOC sequestration Veldkamp et al., 2003) was employed with potentials. Thus, results of this study will the assumption that the adjacent grassland be useful in understanding the changes in (G) and forest plantation (FP) are land uses SOC, total above ground biomass (TAGB) converted from forest or secondary forest (F). and soil nutrient stocks as influenced by All adjacent sites were selected carefully to the transformation of secondary forest into have comparable soil physical and chemical different land use systems. This is also an properties, climate, parent material – i.e. important contribution to the databank for any change in soil properties is caused by greenhouse gas inventories as United Nations the land conversion (Veldkamp et al., 2003). Framework Convention on Climate Change The secondary forest was considered as (UNFCC) and other international agencies the reference land use. Climate, slope, where policy agenda on greenhouse gas drainage, and geographical coordinates mitigation has been advocated. Moreover, (using GPS) were determined in the field or the results will also be useful in determining from secondary sources such as maps and/or the SOC sequestration potential of Andisol in existing publications. Lake Danao National Park (LDNP). LDNP is one of the forest reserves in the Philippines Field investigation, Soil Sampling where you can at the same time find areas and Laboratory Analysis that have been converted to grassland and forest plantation, making the location very A stratified random sampling scheme was suitable for this study’s methodology. An carried out in choosing the sub-sampling understanding of the results of this study can points for composite soil collection. In every bring awareness to people that conversion of one hectare area of each land use, four forest to grassland and forest plantation would plots (20m x 20m) were randomly prepared have both positive and negative effects on which served as replications. In each plot, SOC stocks and on soil nutrient status. five sub-sampling points were randomly The study hypothesized that conversion of selected with an area 25 meters apart. Using secondary forest to grassland with similar a soil auger, soil samples in each of the Andisol soils will bring a decline in SOC sub-sampling points were collected uniformly stocks and nutrient reserves while the land from the following depths: 0–20 cm, 20–40 use change to forest plantation will lead to an cm, and 40–60 cm. Collected soil samples increase of these parameters again. Thus, were brought immediately to the screen this study quantified and evaluated the SOC house of the Department of Soil Science, stocks, TAGB and nutrient stocks of soils Visayas State Univeristy, Baybay City, Leyte, 2 Carnıce and Lina JSET Vol.5, 2017 Figure 1. (A) Map of Leyte (Redrawn from Department of Environment and Natural Resources); (B) Sketch of the sampling sites in LDNP, Ormoc City, Leyte, Philippines air-dried, pulverized and passed through a Total SOC (Mg C ha−1) = (%SOC)/(100) 2mm sieve. The following soil physical and x soil depth (m) x bulk density (Mg m−3) chemical properties were determined: bulk x 10000 m2 ha−1 density using paraffin clod method (Blake and Hartge, 1986); porosity by calculation In the F and FP, representative sampling of particle density and bulk density; particle plots (10 m x 10 m) were laid-out. All trees size distribution (soil texture) using pipette inside the plots with a diameter at breast height method (ISRIC, 1986); soil pH was analysed (dbh) of at least 10cm were identified and potentiometrically using soil and water ratio recorded. of 1:2.5 (ISRIC, 1986); delta pH using The aboveground tree biomass with KCl (pH KCl–pH H2O) (Mekaru & Uehara, dbh <10cm (Lasco and Sales, 2003) was 1972); soil organic matter (%) using modified calculated using allometric equation (Brown Walkley-Black method (Nelson and Sommers, and Lugo, 1990). Total aboveground biomass 1982); Total N (%) using the micro-Kjeldahl (trees): method; extractable P (mg kg−1) was determined according to Bray #2 method (Bray %Y = exp [-2.134 + 2.530*ln (dbh)] and Kurtz, 1945; Murphy and Riley, 1945); cation exchange capacity (CEC) using 1N Where: NH OAc adjusted to pH 7.0 method (ISRIC, 4 • Y = biomass per tree in kg; 1986) with some modifications; exchangeable 3+ + −1 acidity (Acidity (Al and H ) (cmolc kg ) • dbh = diameter at breast height in (Thomas, 1982) and exchangeable K, Ca, centimeters Mg (mg kg−1) was quantified using Atomic −1 Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) (Varian C storage (t ha ) = Total biomass/ha x 0.45 Spectra 220 FS) reading. SOC contents were analyzed for the specified three depths from Aboveground and root biomass from 1 each land use. SOC stock was calculated m x 1 m plot at each grassland site were using the equation. determined. All grasses found within the plot were collected. The harvested grasses were washed thoroughly with tap water and then 3 Carnıce and Lina JSET Vol.5, 2017 distilled water. After which, fresh weight was as Typic Hapludand under the soil order determined. Representative samples were Andisols (USDA, 2003) and some evidences oven-dried at 65◦C. The carbon stock of the are presented in Table 1 along with other grass biomass was calculated with following characteristics of the site. Soil profile (cambic formula: soil horizon) development in F is poor and the area has common rock outcrops. Dipterocarp tree species are dominant in the secondary WC = WO x 0.5 forest. Based on the interview of the caretaker of LDNP, the conversion of forest occurred in Where: 1970s. G is located in the same volcanic hill which is less than 700 m away from • WC = Weight of carbon in grass biomass the secondary forest (F). FP, with less than (g); 300 m distance from F, was planted with Gymnostoma phumphianum in 1971 and was • WO = Oven-dry weight of aboveground biomass; not disturbed since then. Ormoc highlands climate is Type II in the Coronas climate • 0.5 = Estimated C percentage in classification (Asio, 1996). The presence plant biomass (Sarmiento et al., 2005; of the Central Cordillera of Leyte delineates Redondo, 2007) eastern side of the range having slightly different climate from that of the western side.