Efficiency comparison of planting and natural shrub and bush species in biomass carbon sequestration (Case study: northwest of Meyghan desert, Arak, Iran)

Atmospheric carbon dioxide has noticeably increased in recent decades.Experiences show that restoration of vegetation could cause carbon to be stabilized in plant tissues, called carbon sequestration.This research was aimed to compare the potential of biomass carbon sequestration in the planted vegetation types of Haloxylon persicum and Atriplex canescens and natural vegetation types of Salsola incanescens and Atriplex verrucifera in northwest of Meyghan desert, Arak. In each vegetation type, aboveground and underground biomass were measured for the dominant and companion species.Results showed that in all vegetation types, the amount of carbon stored in aerial biomass was higher than of underground biomass (2.61 times for the average of all vegetation types). The total biomass carbon sequestration of H. persicum, A. canescens, S. incanescens and A. veruccifera was531.19, 228.79, 207.77 and 91.61 g/m2, respectively and the average of H. persicum vegetation type showed a significant difference with other types. Our results clearly show that after 20 years of vegetation restoration, planted vegetation types of H. persicum and A. canescens are evaluated as successful in terms of biomass carbon sequestration.