Carbon stocks of different land uses in the Kumrat valley, Hindu Kush Region of Pakistan

Changes in land use cover, particularly from forest to agriculture, is a major contributing factor in increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) level in the atmosphere. Using satellite images of 1999 and 2011, land use and land use changes in the Kumrat valley KPK, Pakistan, were determined: a net decrease of 11.56 and 7.46 % occurred in forest and rangeland, while 100 % increase occurred in agriculture land (AL). Biomass in different land uses, forest land (FL), AL, and range land (RL) was determined by field inventory. From the biomass data, the amount of carbon was calculated, considering 50 % of the biomass as carbon. Soil carbon was also determined to a depth of 0–15 and 16–30 cm. The average carbon stocks (C stocks) in all land uses ranged from 28.62 ± 13.8 t ha−1 in AL to 486.6 ± 32.4 t ha−1 in pure Cedrus deodara forest. The results of the study confirmed that forest soil and vegetation stored the maximum amount of carbon followed by RL. Conversion of FL and RL to AL not only leads to total loss of about 56 % (from FL conversion) and 37 % (RL conversion) of soil carbon in the last decades but also the loss of a valuable carbon sink. In order to meet the emissions reduction obligations of the Kyoto Protocol, Conservation of forest and RL in the mountainous regions of the Hindu Kush will help Pakistan to meet its emissions reduction goals under the Kyoto Protocol.