Current capabilities for observing forest above-ground biomass. Shaun Quegan (University of Sheffield) National Centre for Earth Observation

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1 Current capabilities for observing forest above-ground biomass Shaun Quegan (University of Sheffield) National Centre for Earth Observation

2 State of Carbon and Inventory of Global Forests

3 Pan-tropical biomass maps based essentially on IceSAT lidar height Baccini et al, 2012 Saatchi et al, 2012

4 EO and in situ differences RS1 = Saatchi RS2 = Baccini KDH = kriged in situ

5 SW-NE Amazon transect

6 Spatial distribution of total forest carbon density in NH boreal and temperate forests and its relative uncertainty (1 = 100% uncertainty). Thurner et al., 2013

7 Above ground C (all biomes) from vegetation optical depth (radiometer data, spatial resolution 10+ km)

8 Measuring biomass from space: current status C-band (Sentinel-1, Radarsat) and X-band radar (Tandem-X) are in orbit but have limited value for biomass estimation PALSAR-2 is in orbit and will help to estimate biomass in lower biomass and regrowing forests. SAOCOM L-band radar should launch in NASA approved the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) lidar for deployment on the International Space Station in ESA PBEO approved the BIOMASS P-band radar mission for launch ~2020. ESA kicked off the GlobBiomass project in January.

9 State of Carbon and Inventory of Global Forests

10 In situ measurements of biomass

11 In situ developments 1. As part of the BIOMASS preparatory programme: an African P-band and in situ campaign related to the Gabon lidar campaign will take place in 2015; ESA are establishing an International Forest Biomass Network. 2. A major contribution to reducing the uncertainty in estimates of tropical biomass was the publication of new allometric models by Chave et al. (2014), based on in situ measurements across the whole tropical belt that greatly extend earlier data sets. 3. First BIOMASS Science Workshop 27-30/01/2015.

12 Current capabilities for observing soil organic carbon

13 Harmonized World Soil Database For global spatial layers on soil parameters, the most recent and complete dataset is available as the HWSD.

14 Harmonized Soil Carbon Database This database was established by IIASA and FAO in partnership with: ISRIC-World Soil Information which, together with the FAO, contributed recent regional soil and terrain databases together with the WISE soil profile database; The European Soil Bureau Network, which provided its major new update of soil information for Europe and northern Eurasia; and The Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, which made available its most recent 1:1,000,000 scale Soil Map of China.

15 Northern Circumpolar Soil Carbon Database The map shows the extent of the northern circumpolar permafrost region and soil organic carbon content to a depth of 1 m, estimated using the Northern Circumpolar Soil Carbon Database. provides information and data from the Northern Circumpolar Soil Carbon Database version 2 (NCSCDv2), a spatial dataset created for the purpose of quantifying storage of organic carbon in soils of the northern circumpolar permafrost region.

16 ISCN & ESDAC The European Soil Data Centre is a single focal point for all soil data and information in Europe. The International Soil Carbon Network is a scientific network devoted to the advancement of soil carbon research. It coordinates independent soil research and monitoring efforts in the United States and internationally. ISCN members contribute to a community-driven soil carbon database and use available data to prepare scientific papers and large-scale syntheses.

17 SOC monitoring status Jandl et al., Current status, uncertainty and future needs in soil organic carbon monitoring, Science of the Total Environment, (2014) Besides its scientific challenges, the establishment of a global SOC network is demanding with respect to the secondment of infrastructure and manpower. It requires a strong commitment by leading soil science institutions and the readiness for joining forces and overcoming institutional barriers. Establishing a global soil monitoring network will be a long and tedious process with many highs and lows. It will require the endurance of the involved scientists, and continuous funding in order to scrutinize and integrate emerging information in the already existing systems. The expected benefit of a functional global SOC information system will be tremendous, equally for policy makers, land managers, and the scientific community.

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20 UNEP-WCRC global C map based on HWSD & biomass C map.