Multi-century times-since-fire and prior fire interval determine biomass carbon stocks in obligate-seeder eucalypt woodlands

Carl R. Gosper; Colin J. Yates; Georg Wiehl; Alison O’Donnell; Suzanne M. Prober

doi:10.1071/WF23159

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Previous Next Contents Vol 33(6)

Multi-century times-since-fire and prior fire interval determine biomass carbon stocks in obligate-seeder eucalypt woodlands

Carl R. Gosper

^A ^B ^* , Colin J. Yates ^A , Georg Wiehl ^B , Alison O’Donnell ^B and Suzanne M. Prober ^C

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Biodiversity and Conservation Science, Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Bentley Delivery Centre, Locked Bag 104, Bentley, WA 6983, Australia.

^B CSIRO Environment, PO Box 7229, Karawara, WA 6152, Australia.

^C CSIRO Environment, PO Box 1700, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: carl.gosper@dbca.wa.gov.au

International Journal of Wildland Fire 33, WF23159 https://doi.org/10.1071/WF23159

Submitted: 28 September 2023 Accepted: 16 May 2024 Published: 13 June 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of IAWF. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Background

Understanding the influence of fires on terrestrial carbon stocks is important for informing global climate models and underpinning land management-based carbon markets.

Aims

To quantify biomass carbon in south-western Australia’s Great Western Woodlands – the world’s largest extant Mediterranean-climate woodland – with time-since-fire and prior fire interval.

Methods

Plot-based measurement of live and dead tree and shrub size, woody debris volume and litter mass across a ~400-year chronosequence to calculate biomass carbon.

Key results

Biomass carbon increased with time-since-fire, reaching >65 Mg C ha⁻¹, although the rate of increase declined in mature woodlands. Biomass carbon decreased after fire in these obligate-seeder woodlands, while a longer prior fire interval buffered carbon fluxes through retained large standing dead trees and fallen woody debris.

Conclusions

The current age class distribution of the ~95,000 km² of eucalypt woodlands in the region may support ~0.453 Pg C. Further refinement of carbon estimates explicitly considering variation in woodland type and climate, a continuous woodland age distribution and soil carbon are required to underpin a carbon methodology.

Implications

Biomass carbon would be maximised by reducing the extent of bushfires impacting woodlands, focussing on existing mature stands that support the greatest carbon stocks.

Keywords: aboveground carbon, ecological fire management, Eucalyptus salubris, fire regime, Great Western Woodlands, multi-century chronosequence, stand-replacement, succession.

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