STUDY ON THE CARBON SEQUESTRATION POTENTIAL OF TREES IN KONNAGAR , W.B.,

A COLLABORATIVE VENTURE BEWEEN AND CLEAN BLUE PLANET CONSULTANCY SERVICES

CONTENTS

A. BACKGROUND

B. TECHNICAL

I. Introduction II. Project objectives III. Description of the study sites IV. Methodology V. Results & Discussion VI. Summary VII. Recommendation VIII. References

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A. BACKGROUND

The phenomenon of global warming has become a vital issue in the present ‘era’, which is keenly related to emission of carbon dioxide from varied sectors of human civilization ranging from household activities to industries. Even the shifting of the land use pattern generates considerable amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Trees play an important role in the global carbon cycle. Considering the extent and expansion rate of urban development coupled with industrialization, the safe guarding of the environment is a key issue. This can be achieved cost-effectively by carbon sequestering through plantation and ecorestoration of the dumping areas of cities and towns.

A plantation or a may be a “source” or a “sink” of carbon depending on the volume and relative density of the tree species, microbial load of the soil and climatic condition of the area. So a project was framed to know the stored carbon in different tree species inhabiting Konnagar Municipality area. Konnagar is a city and a Municipality in in the maritime state of , India encompassing 20 wards in the Konnagar Municipal Area. It is under Police Station in the sub-division.

In line with this primary objective, Dr. Abhijit Mitra, former Head, Department of Marine Science, University of Calcutta and Advisor of Techno India University, Salt Lake Campus (Kolkata) and Advisor of Clean Blue Planet Consultancy service visited Konnagar on 27th June, 2015 to discuss in details the modalities of the project with Hon’ble Chairman of Konnagar Municipality, Sri Bappaditya Chatterjee.

A group discussion took place to carry out the project objectives by involving the schools teachers and students of Konnagar, and Shri Bappaditya Chatterjee decided Report Prepared by Dr. Abhijit Mitra and Dr. Sufia Zaman on behalf of Clean Blue Planet - 3 - Consultancy Services, Kolkata in collaboration with Konnagar Municipality

Go for a carbon free green zone to extend all infrastructural facilities to Dr. Abhijit Mitra and his team members. A team was constituted involving researchers of Techno India University, Clean Blue Planet Consultancy services, staff and associated members of Konnagar Municipality, teachers and students of several schools in Konnagar Municipality (Table 1). TABLE 1: Team members at a glance Name Designation Qualification Duty assigned by the PI  Field sampling Former Head,  Technical guidance Dr. Abhijit Mitra Department of Marine  Chemical analysis (P.I. and Chief Science, University of M.Sc., Ph.D  Interpretation consultant of the Calcutta and Advisor of project) Clean Blue Planet  Report writing Consultancy Services

Dr. Sufia Zaman  Field sampling (Consultant and Adjunct Faculty,  Chemical analysis M.Sc., Ph.D Research Head of Techno India University  Interpretation the project)  Report writing Smt. Shampa Mitra  Field sampling (Technical Head of Research Scholar,  Chemical analysis M.Sc. the project) Techno India University  Report compilation

Mr. Prosenjit Pramanick Research Scholar,  Field sampling (Research Officer of M.Sc. Techno India University  Chemical analysis the project)

Mr. Subhasmita Sinha  Field sampling Research Scholar, (Research Officer of M.Sc.  Chemical analysis Calcutta University the project)

Ms. Upasana Datta  Field sampling (Technical staff of Research Scholar,  Chemical analysis M.Sc. the project) Techno India University  Awareness generation

Smt. Rupa Banerjee  Field sampling (Technical staff of Research Scholar, M.Sc.  Chemical analysis the project) Techno India University

Ms. Nabonita Pal  Field sampling (Technical staff of Research Scholar,  Quiz material M.Sc. the project) Techno India University preparation

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Sri Deb Kumar Samanta Field Staff, Class X  Field sampling (Field staff of the Clean Blue Planet (appeared) project) Consultancy Services

 Co-ordination of the Konnagar Uccha project Dr. Kanchan Panda Vidyalaya  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species Konnagar Uccha  Co-ordination of the Sri Bhaskar Vidyalaya project

Chongdar Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Uccha  Co-ordination of the Sri Kamalakshya Vidyalaya project

Chakraborty Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Uccha  Co-ordination of the Vidyalaya project Sri Motilal Murmu Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Uccha  Co-ordination of the Smt. Mahua Singha Vidyalaya project

Roy Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species  Co-ordination of the Rajendra Smriti Sri Tulsidas project Vidyalaya Bandyopadhyaya  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Rajendra Smriti Sri Sudipto Shankar project Vidyalaya Mani  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Rajendra Smriti project Sri Rajib Chatterjee Vidyalaya  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Rajendra Smriti project Smt. Anjali Biswas Vidyalaya  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Hindu Uccha project Smt. Shibani Sarkar Balika Vidyalaya  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Hindu Uccha Smt. Anjana project Balika Vidyalaya Sengupta  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species Report Prepared by Dr. Abhijit Mitra and Dr. Sufia Zaman on behalf of Clean Blue Planet - 5 - Consultancy Services, Kolkata in collaboration with Konnagar Municipality

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Konnagar Hindu Uccha  Co-ordination of the Smt. Ruma Balika Vidyalaya project

Majumdar Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species  Co-ordination of the Dr. Asish Ghosh project Vidyapith Hazra  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Sri Aurobindo Sri Haripada project Vidyapith Murmu  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Sri Aurobindo project Sri Subhasish Saha Vidyapith  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Sri Aurobindo Sri Niloy Shankar project Vidyapith Banerjee  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Kalyan Smt. Nibha project Parishad Bandopadhyay  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Kalyan Smt. Ganga Saha project Parishad (Bose)  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Kalyan Smt. Rituparna project Parishad Palui  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Kalyan Smt. project Parishad Talukdar  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Kalyan Smt. Namita project Parishad Murmu  Identification of the Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Nagendra Kundu Sri Swapan Kumar project Vidyamandir Nag  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Nagendra Kundu project Sri Prabir Kumar Vidyamandir  Identification of the Sarkar Assistant Teacher floral species  Report Prepared by Dr. Abhijit Mitra and Dr. Sufia Zaman on behalf of Clean Blue Planet - 6 - Consultancy Services, Kolkata in collaboration with Konnagar Municipality

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 Co-ordination of the Smt. Subhra Nagendra Kundu project Bhattacharya Vidyamandir  Identification of the Biswas Assistant Teacher floral species  Co-ordination of the Konnagar Ashalata Smt. Munmun project Balika Vidyalaya Mukherjee  Identification of the Head Teacher floral species Konnagar Ashalata  Co-ordination of the Balika Vidyalaya project Smt. Basanti Tudu Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Ashalata  Co-ordination of the Balika Vidyalaya project Smt. Soma Mitra Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Ashalata  Co-ordination of the Smt. Promila Balika Vidyalaya project

Majumdar Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Ashalata  Co-ordination of the Balika Vidyalaya project Smt. Haimanti Maji Assistant Teacher  Identification of the floral species Konnagar Municipality participants Name Designation Job description Sri Bappaditya Chatterjee Chairman Concept development, coordination, awareness Sri Sujit Kar Staff Field survey, awareness and coordination Sri Aloke Mukherjee Staff Co-ordination Sri Samar Ranjan Dhar Staff Co-ordination Sri Manoj Saha Staff Co-ordination Sri Ranjan Ghosh Member Concept initiation, co- ordination, awareness

______Signature of Chairman, Signature of P.I of the Project Konnagar Municipality

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B. TECHNICAL

The general consensus among climate researchers and environmentalists is that increased emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from human activities and luxurious life styles, burning fossil fuels, and massive deforestation in many regions of the world are changing the climate of the planet Earth. CO2 plays the major role in absorbing outgoing terrestrial radiation and contributes about half of the total green house effect. Between 1850 and 1900, around 100 gigatons of carbon was released into the air just for land-use changes (Pandey, 2002). Most of the increase has been since 1940 (Hair and Sampson, 1992). The atmospheric CO2 concentration is currently rising by 4% per decade (Jo and McPherson, 2001). Worldwide concern about climate change has created increasing interest in trees to help reduce the level of atmospheric CO2 (Dwyer et al., 1992). Trees are most critical components for taking carbon out of circulation for long periods of time. Of the total amount of carbon tied up in earthbound forms, an estimated 90% is contained in the world’s , which includes trees, forest floor (litter) and forest soil. For each cubic foot of merchantable wood produced in a tree, about 33 lb. (14.9 kg) of carbon is stored in total tree biomass (Sampson et al., 1992).

In 2001, Governments throughout the world made a broad political commitment to address climate change. The Marrakech Accords to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) were adopted after several years of extensive negotiation. Through these accords, Governments agreed on a set of rules for implementing commitments under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the subsequent decade. A number of forestry and land-use initiatives

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On this background, the present study is an attempt to establish a baseline data set of the carbon content in the major tree species of Konnagar Municipality

Carbon registries typically segregate a number of carbon pools within forests or plantation sites that can be clearly identified and quantified. These carbon pools are categorized in a variety of ways, but typically include many of the same components. The total carbon in a forest or plantation site is the summation of the Above Ground Biomass (AGB), Below Ground Biomass (BGB), litter and Soil Organic Carbon (SOC). The biomass of trees in the respective sites depends on multiple factors like soil property, rainfall, solar radiation, nutrient availability and even the grazing pressure.

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1. Monitoring the variation of stored carbon in the Above Ground Biomass (AGB) of common (dominant) tree species in the Konnagar Municipality area.

2. Evaluation of Above Ground Carbon (AGC) and CO2-equivalent.

3. Monitoring the soil pH of selected wards.

4. Drafting carbon card for each tree species inhabiting Konnagar Municipality

5. Awareness generation.

Konnagar is located on the west bank of the River Hooghly between 22.7°N and 88.35°E and has an average elevation of ~ 13.56 metres. Konnagar is positioned between and Hindmotor on the - Main Line and Grand Trunk Road. Approximate area of Konnagar is 4.32 km2.

Konnagar is culturally a rich zone and has a number of temples, cultural clubs and meeting places where people of all ranks of the society often meet to exchange/share their knowledge. Konnagar houses the famous Kalitala, Baro Mandir and Shankaracharya Temple. A heritage property (known as Konnagar Bagan Bari), which belonged to the father of the master artist Late Abanindranath Tagore has added a cultural feather on the crown of Konnagar (Fig. 1).

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Fig. 1. Heritage property in Konnagar

As of 2011 India census, Konnagar had a population of ~80,000. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Konnagar has an average literacy rate of 80%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 77%. There are 20 wards in the Konnagar Municipal Area. It is under Uttarpara Police Station in Serampore sub-division.

A wide spectrum of tree species is a noted feature in the landscape of Konnagar. The dominant tree species includes Mangifera indica (Mango), Azadirachta indica (Neem), Aegle marmelos (Bel), Terminalia arjuna (Arjun), Eucalyptus globus (Eucalyptus), Psidium guajava (Guava), Acacia auriculacformis (Akashmoni), Peltophorum pterocarpum (Radhachura), Delonix regia (Krishnachura) etc.

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The entire network of the present study initiated with the selection of six sampling zones in the Konnagar Municipality area. In each zone 10 m × 10 m quadrate was selected (at random) for the study and the average readings were documented from each such quadrate by involving the school students and teachers after imaparting a training to the team members on biomass estimation of trees. A form was supplied to all the participating schools where the students measured and estimated the Diameter at Breast Height (DBH) and Relative Abundance (RA) of the tree species under the supervision of their teachers. The mean relative abundance of each tree species was evaluated for assessing the order of dominance of tree species in the study area. Only those species occupying equal to and above 70% in the study area were considered for carbon estimation. This exercise (by involving the teachers, students and staff of Konnagar Municipality) was carried out to aware the people of all ranks of the society of Konnagar regarding the values of trees in upgrading the environmental health.

The Above Ground Biomass (comprising of stem, branch and ) of individual trees of dominant species in each quadrate was estimated as per the standard procedure stated here and the average biomass values (of all quadrates of each zone) were finally expressed as tonnes per hectare. Soil pH was analyzed as directly through soil pH meter.

The methodologies adopted for assessing different parameters in the present study are explained in details through 5 sections.

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Section 1: Stem biomass estimation

The stem biomass for each tree species in every plot was estimated using non- destructive method in which the Diameter at the Breast Height (DBH) was measured after assessing the circumference with a measuring tape and height with laser beam (BOSCH DLE 70 Professional model). Form factor was determined with Spiegel relascope as per the method outlined by Koul and Panwar (2008). The stem volume (V) was then calculated using the expression FHΠr2, where F is the form factor, r is the radius of the tree derived from its DBH and H is the height of the target tree. Specific gravity (G) of the wood was estimated taking the stem cores, which was further converted into stem biomass (BS) as per the expression BS = GV.

Section 2: Branch biomass estimation

The total number of branches irrespective of size was counted on each of the sample trees. These branches were categorized on the basis of basal diameter into three groups, viz. <6 cm, 6–10 cm and >10 cm. Dry weight of two branches from each size group was recorded separately using the equation of Chidumaya (1990).

Total branch biomass (dry weight) per sample tree was determined as per the expression:

Bdb = n1bw1 + n2bw2 + n3bw3 = Σ nibwi

Where, Bdb is the dry branch biomass per tree, ni the number of branches in the ith branch group, bwi the average weight of branches in the ith group and i = 1, 2, 3, …..n are the branch groups. This procedure was followed for all the dominant tree species separately for every quadrate.

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Section 3: Leaf biomass estimation

Leaves from nine branches (three of each size group as stated in section 2) of individual trees of each species were removed. One tree of each species per quadrate was considered for estimation. The were weighed and oven dried separately (species wise) to a constant weight at 80 ± 50C. The leaf biomass was then estimated by multiplying the average biomass of the leaves per branch with the number of branches in a single tree and the average number of trees per plot as per the expression:

Ldb = n1Lw1N1 + n2Lw2N2 + ……….niLwiNi

Where, Ldb is the dry leaf biomass of the tree species per quadrate, n1..….ni are the number of branches of each tree species, Lw1 …….Lwi are the average dry weight of leaves removed from the branches and N1………Ni are the number of trees per species in the quadrate.

Section 4: Carbon and carbon dioxide-equivalent estimation

Direct estimation of percent carbon was done by a CHN analyzer. For this, a portion of fresh sample of stem, branch and leaf from selected trees (two trees/species/plot) of individual species (covering all the selected plots) was oven dried at 700C, randomly mixed and ground to pass through a 0.5 mm screen (1.0 mm screen for leaves). The carbon content (in %) was finally analyzed for each part of each species through a Vario MACRO elementar CHN analyzer. The mean of these vegetative parts were considered as the stored carbon in AGB of each species and finally converted to CO2 – equivalent by multiplyting with a factor of 3.67.

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Section 5: Soil pH analysis

The measurement of soil pH was done in the field with a micro pH meter (Systronics, Model No, 362) with glass – calomel electrode (sensitivity ± 0.01) and standardized with buffer 7.0.

The biomass and productivity of forests have been studied mainly in terms of wood production, forest conservation, and ecosystem management (Putz and Chan, 1986; Tamai et al., 1986; Komiyama et al., 1987; Clough and Scott, 1989; McKee, 1995; Ong et al., 1995). The contemporary understanding of the global warming phenomenon, however, has generated interest in the carbon-stocking ability of trees. The carbon sequestration in this unique producer community is a function of biomass production capacity, which in turn depends upon interaction between edaphic, climate, and topographic factors of an area. Hence, results obtained at one place may not be applicable to another. Therefore, region based potential of different land types needs to be worked out. In the present study, mean values of AGB and AGC data have been presented (Table 2) considering the 6 zones demarcated in the map (Fig. 2).

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Fig. 2. Sampling zones for carbon mapping programme in Konnagar Municipality

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TABLE 2 List of dominant tree species in Konnnagar municipality with their respective AGB and AGC Sl. AGB AGC CO - Species 2 No. (tonnes ha-1) (tonnes ha-1) equivalent

1. 914.90 432.74 1674.73 (47.3%)

Cocos nucifera ()

2. 34.10 15.96 58.57 (46.8%)

Murraya koenigii (Curry tree)

220.09 3. 448.24 807.73 (49.1%)

Albizia saman (Shirish)

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141.01 4. 307.89 517.51 (45.8%)

Azadirachta indica (Neem)

1328.82 5. 2474.53 4876.77 (53.7%)

Mangifera indica (Mango)

1929.98 6. 4195.60 7083.03 (46.0%)

Tamarindus indica (Tentul)

392.60 7. 830.03 1440.84 (47.3%)

Bombax ceiba (Shimul)

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1501.74 8. 3202.00 5511.39 (46.9%)

Aegle marmelos (Bel)

223.30 9. 481.24 819.51 (46.4%)

Terminalia arjuna (Arjun)

249.11 10. 542.72 914.23 (45.9%)

Tectona grandis (Segun)

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1350.41 11. 2854.98 4956.00 (47.3%)

Delonix regia (Krishnachura)

111.82 12. 228.67 410.38 (48.9%)

Artocarpus heterophyllus (Jackfruit)

219.02 13. 455.35 803.80 (48.1%)

Swietenia mahagoni (Mahogany)

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114.23 14. 233.12 419.22 (49.0%)

Terminalia catappa (Kath badam)

454.14 15. 924.92 1666.69 (49.1%)

Psidium guajava (Guava)

927.77 16. 1961.45 3404.92 (47.3%)

Acacia auriculacformis (Akashmoni)

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55.71 17. 116.54 204.46 (47.8%)

Alstonia scholaris (Chatim)

145.44 18. 301.74 533.76 (48.2%)

Ziziphus mauritiana (Kul)

2716.23 19. 5853.95 9968.56 (46.4%)

Eucalyptus globus (Eucalyptus)

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222.87 20. 486.62 817.93 (45.8%)

Dalbergia sissoo (Shishu)

14.21 21. 30.10 52.15 (47.2%)

Syzygium samarangense (Jamrul)

22. 5.96 3.27 12.00 (54.9%)

Santalum album (Sandal)

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275.49 23. 604.14 1011.78 (45.6%)

Peltophorum pterocarpum (Radhachura)

156.70 24. 341.39 575.09 (45.9%)

Polyalthia longifolia (Debdaru)

168.80 25. 348.77 619.50 (48.4%)

Borassus flabellifer (Sugar palm)

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1481.08 26. 3111.52 5435.56 (47.6%)

Areca catechu (Betel palm or Supari)

1073.70 27. 2143.11 3940.48 (50.1%)

Ficus religiosa (Peepul)

540.16 28. 1095.66 1982.39 (49.3%)

Ficus benghalensis ()

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The AGB of the study site is in the order Eucalyptus globus (5853.95) > Tamarindus indica (4195.60) > Aegle marmelos (3202.00) > Arecea catechu (3111.52) > Delonix regia (2854.98) > Magnifera indica (2474.53) > (2143.11) > Acacia auriculacformis (1961.45) > Ficus bengalensis (1095.66) > Psidium guajava (924.92) > Cocos nucifera (914.90) Bombax ceiba (830.03) > Peltophorum pterocarpum (604.14) > Tectona grandis (542.72) > Dalberegia sissoo (486.62) > Terminalia arjuna (481.24) > Swietenia mahagoni (455.35) > Albizia saman (448.24) > Polyalthia longifolia (341.39) > Azadirachta indica (307.89) > Ziziphus mauritiana (301.74) > Terminalia catappa (233.12) > Artocarpus heterophyllus (228.67) > Alstonia scholaris (116.54) > Murraya koenigii (34.10) > Syzygium samarangense (30.10) > > Santalum album (5.96).

Similarly the AGC follows the sequence of Eucalyptus globus (2716.23) > Tamarindus indica (1929.98) > Aegle marmelos (1501.74) > Arecea catechu (1481.08) > Delonix regia (1350.41) > Magnifera indica (1328.82) > Ficus religiosa (1073.70) > Acacia auriculacformis (927.77) > Ficus bengalensis (540.16) > Psidium guajava (454.14) > Cocos nucifera (432.74) > Bombax ceiba (392.60) > Peltophorum pterocarpum (275.69) > Tectona grandis (249.11) > Terminalia arjuna (223.30) > Dalberegia sissoo (222.87) > Albizia saman (220.09) > Swietenia mahagoni (219.02) > Polyalthia longifolia (156.70) > Ziziphus mauritiana (145.44) > Azadirachta indica (141.01) > Terminalia catappa (114.23) > Artocarpus heterophyllus (111.82) > Alstonia scholaris (55.71) > Murraya koenigii (15.96) > Syzygium samarangense (14.21) > Santalum album (3.27).

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The burning of fossil fuel, changes in land uses, mining and construction have caused an increase in the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. Such increases have the potential to cause regional and global climate and related environmental changes like increase in global temperature, change in precipitation amount and pattern, rise in sea level, and increase in frequency and severity of extreme weather events (Easterling et al., 2000). These projections have encouraged scientists to consider options for minimizing future increase in global CO2 concentrations. A potential approach to mitigating the rising CO2 concentration is to enhance sequestration of C in terrestrial ecosystems (Paustian et al., 1998). This can be achieved by enhancing the processes of photosynthesis through that assimilate CO2 increasing biomass productivity, and allocating the assimilated C into long-lived and Soil Organic Matter (SOM) pools resistant to microbial decomposition. This indicates the importance of plant - and soil - based carbon sequestration strategies, which can be successfully implemented to reduce the net

CO2 emission into the atmosphere.

The core findings of the present study are listed below: 1) The present study has covered 25% of the total area of Konnagar, which is approximately 1.32 sq. km. 2) In this 25% area Polyalthia longifolia (Debdaru), Delonix regia (Krishnachura), Peltophorum pterocarpum (Radhachura) are dominant species, but the carbon sequestration being a function of biomass and number of individuals of each species is highest in Eucalyptus followed by Tamarindus indica (Tentul), Aegle marmelos (Bel), Arecea catechu (Supari), Magnifera indica (Mango), Ficus religiosa (Peepul),

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Ficus bengalensis (Banyan) and Acacia auriculiformis (Akashmoni). The other species have biomass less than 1000 tonnes/ha. 3) The order of AGC is exactly similar to the order of AGB. 4) The total Above Ground Biomass (AGB) of dominant trees (where Relative Abundance is equal to or more than 70%) is 34,529. 24 tonnes/ha and the total stored carbon (AGC) is 16,466.40 tonnes/ha, which is equivalent to 60,431.69 CO2- equivalent.

Remark: Although Curry tree (Murraya koenijii) and Sandal tree (Santalum album) are much below 70% in terms of abundance, but considering the rareity of the species we have included them in the present study.

5) The soil pH in most of the quadrates of Konnagar ranges between 6.4 -6.8. However, in some places (like the soil within the heritage property of Konnagar) the pH is highly acidic which is between 2.8 -3.3. Also in the northern side of the Konnagar Rabindra Bhawan the soil pH is around 5. All these places require some soil management. 6) Awareness generation amongst the students for afforestation related programmes was carried out through slide presentation and quiz contest.

 Application of 2% lime (dissolved in water) needs to be carried out (frequency once in every 2 months) in all the six sampling zones, and for Heritage property site and Konnagar Rabindra Bhaban the frequency will be once a month. This is recommended for three months.  Use of organic fertilizer (liquid form) is recommended (Annexure 1). This may be sourced from endemic floral species, preferably water hyacinth that is widely

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available in Jorapukur (Boro/Large) or any other waterbodies in Konnagar Municipality area.  Public awareness programmes on air, water and soil quality need to be organized frequently.

Annexure 1: Composition of organic fertilizer ingredients

Ingredient N P2O5 K2O Ca Mg S Comments Blood 12-15 2-3 1 BDL BDL BDL Good source of (dried) nutrients Blood meal 15 0.5-1 1 BDL BDL BDL Good source of (steamed) nutrients Bone meal ~ 1.8 10- 0 18-30 0 0 Low nitrogen and (steamed) 20 moderate source of nutrients Compost V V V V V V Depending on the (garden) ingredients and technology, the composition varies Cotton seed 6-7 2.5 1.5 BDL BDL BDL Good source of meal nutrients Cotton seed 0 0 27 BDL BDL BDL Noted for high hull ash potassium level Fish scrap 8.5-9.5 1-2 0 BDL BDL 2.0 Rich in nitrogen, but (Acidulated) bioaccumulated heavy metals and pesticides are causes of concern Dried fish 8.5- 10.0 0 0 5.8 BDL BDL Rich in nitrogen, but meal bioaccumulated heavy metals and pesticides are causes of concern Legume 2-3 2.4 2.4 1.2 0.2 0.3 Balanced nutrient level Cattle 0.5-2 1.5 1.1-1.2 1.1 0.3 BDL - manure Broiler litter 2-3 3.0 2.0 1.6-1.9 0.4 0.3 Balanced nutrient level Seaweed 0.5-0.8 0.8 4.7 BDL BDL BDL Bioaccumulation of conservative pollutants is reported depending on the habitat *V = Variable; BDL = Below Detectable level Report Prepared by Dr. Abhijit Mitra and Dr. Sufia Zaman on behalf of Clean Blue Planet - 29 - Consultancy Services, Kolkata in collaboration with Konnagar Municipality

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