Junliang Zou
Teagasc Johnstown Castle Research Centre
Junliang Zou is a Researcher Officer at Teagasc, focusing on estimating the impacts of afforestation and forest management, and climate change on carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions. His work employs a variety of approaches, including model and broad-scale data synthesis, observational studies, and field experiments. In particular, his research has concentrated on ecosystem carbon cycling and the effects of climate change. He has worked on a rage of projects and published over 40 peer-reviewed papers on these topics.
Forestry carbon accounting
Carbon sequestration is the process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). This process is critical for mitigating climate change by reducing the concentration of CO2, a major greenhouse gas (GHG), in the atmosphere. Forests play a very significant role in carbon sequestration. Trees absorb CO2 from the atmosphere, convert it into organic matter through photosynthesis, and store it in their biomass (trunks, branches, leaves, and roots). Dead organic matter, such as deadwood, leaves and branches, decomposes and contributes to soil organic carbon. CO2 is released through autotrophic and heterotrophic respiration.
Ireland has committed to reducing GHG emissions and enhancing carbon sequestration through a range of measures in the agricultural, land use, land use change and forestry sectors. The Climate Action Plan 2024 identifies enhanced delivery of afforestation, sustainable forest management and increased use of harvested wood products (HWP) as key measures in meeting the objectives. Ireland’s National Forestry Strategy targets a major expansion of climate resilient and healthy forests to 18% of total land area. This paper aims to provide an overview of current knowledge and practices related to forestry carbon sequestration in Ireland, highlight the measurement techniques used and carbon accounting efforts, and discusses future research needs. The objective is to inform policy and industry stakeholders about the importance of measuring and increasing carbon sequestration through forestry.
Read the full paper Forestry carbon accounting (PDF)