Burning of secondary forest in Amazonia: Biomass, burning efficiency and charcoal formation during land preparation for agriculture in Apiaú, Roraima, Brazil

• Published in: Forest ecology and management 2007-04, Vol.242 (2), p.678-687
• Main Authors: Fearnside, Philip M., Barbosa, Reinaldo Imbrozio, de Alencastro Graça, Paulo Maurício Lima
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: air pollution; Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass burning; burning efficiency; carbon; Carbon dioxide; carbon sequestration; charcoal; Deforestation; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; gas emissions; Global warming; Greenhouse gases; prescribed burning; Secondary forest; secondary forests; Synecology; Terrestrial ecosystems; tropical forests; wood
• ISSN: 0378-1127; 1872-7042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2007.02.002

In a burn of 5-year-old secondary forest cleared for agriculture in Roraima, Brazil, carbon partitioning was measured for above-ground portions of both secondary forest (regrowth) and the remains of original forest, felled and burned six years previously. Above-ground dry weight biomass averaged 43.0 ± 6.5 Mg (megagrams = metric tons) per hectare (Mg ha −1) for secondary forest and 105.8 ± 23.7 Mg ha −1 for original forest remains. Pre- and post-burn above-ground biomass loadings were estimated by cutting and weighing six 60-m 2 plots and by line-intersect sampling (LIS) done along the axis of each post-burn plot (three transects), plus two supplementary LIS transects. High variability of initial biomass made LIS more reliable for assessing change in material >10 cm in diameter; quantities for diameter classes