Estimation of monetary value of aboveground carbon sequestration of tree species in Chitgar forest park

Trees are one of the most important and largest carbon reservoirs in forest ecosystems and measuring and estimating carbon reserves in different organs of trees is one of the most important research topics for ecologists. The aim of this study was to estimate the monetary value of aboveground carbon sequestration of tree species in Chitgar forest park. Based on a systematic random sampling method, a total of 100 circular sample plots were collected in a grid with dimensions of 100×100 m. In each plot, species type, diameter at the breast height, and the height of trees were measured. Allometric equations were used to estimate the carbon sequestration of different tree species. The analysis of variance and Duncan tests were used to compare carbon sequestration between different species. The results showed that the mean carbon sequestration in Robinia pseudoacacia, Malus sp., Pinus taeda, Fraxinus sp. and Juniperus sp. were 4.58, 1.92, 58.31, 2.08 and 0.86 ton/ha, respectively. The results of the analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference between the mean carbon sequestrations between different species. Besides, the results also showed that the above ground sequestered carbon was 67.76 tons per hectare and in the whole studied area with 800 hectares, the sequestered carbon was 54212 tons. The economic value of carbon sequestration in Chitgar forest park was calculated at 1.37 million EUR.