Determination of carbon storage amounts in above-ground biomass using NDVI based on land use/land cover classes in Bolu

Abstract

In this study, the land use/land cover (LULC) class of Bolu province in 1990, 2006, and 2018 and LULC class transitions between periods were examined. In addition, the amount of carbon storage in LULC classes of above-ground biomass (AGB) for the years 1990-2018 was determined through NDVI. CORINE land classification was used to determine the change of LULC classes. Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 8 OLI satellite images were used to determine the carbon storage amounts for the selected periods. There has been an increase of approximately 81.56% (4797.1 ha) in the LULC class of artificial surfaces in 28 years. A total increase of 2.87% (5539.8 ha) has been experienced in agricultural areas in the 28-year period. Forest and semi-natural areas decreased by 1.83% (11745.5 ha) and water bodies have increased approximately 3.4 times in 28 years. In terms of carbon amounts in AGB of the LULC classes, there has been approximately 59.5% carbon accumulation over 28 years. While a total of 1583467.3 tons of carbon was stored in 1990, this amount increased to 2664549.5 tons of carbon in 2018. Of the total carbon stored in 1990, 82.5% was stored in the forest and semi-natural areas, and 17% was stored in agricultural areas. While in 2018, 76.3% of the total carbon was stored in forest and semi-natural areas, and 23% in agricultural areas. In the 28-year period, a total of 1000151.7 tons of carbon has accumulated in the AGBs of the LULC classes that have not been converted to a different class. On the other hand, a total of 80930.6 tons of carbon was transferred from one class to another over the transformed lands. In total, 1081082.3 tons of carbon accumulation occurred between 1990 and 2018.