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Quantifying C-Cycle and GHG Emissions in Sub-Saharan Africa

This project aims to establish a monitoring network in Sub-Saharan Africa to better understand and predict carbon cycle and greenhouse gas emissions in the region. The project will focus on quantifying emissions from fires and deforestation, as well as evaluating the potential for carbon sequestration. By integrating environmental dimensions into the socio-economic context, the project aims to address the role of Africa in the global climate system.

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Quantifying C-Cycle and GHG Emissions in Sub-Saharan Africa

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  1. CARBOAFRICA Full title: “Quantification understanding and prediction of C-cycle and other GHGs in Sub-Saharan Africa” European Commission, 6th Framework Programme Priority 1.1.6.3: Global Change and Ecosystems STREP (Specific Targeted Research Project) Proposal no. 037132 Duration: 3 years (01/10/06 – 30/09/09) Funds: 2.8 M€ Coordinator: Prof. Riccardo Valentini, University of Tuscia (Italy) Participant: currently 15 Institutions (11 European, 3 African, + FAO)

  2. CARBOAFRICA Partnership +

  3. CARBOAFRICA Participants organizations currently 15 Institutions (11 European, 3 African, + FAO) soon CESBIO (Fr) will join the consortium

  4. High uncertainty in the understanding of the Africa role in the global C-cycle. CARBOAFRICA Why CarboAfrica? Africa is a region highly vulnerable to climate change due to both ecological and socio-economic factors; however it is the least well-covered region by studies on climate change.

  5. responsible for about 1.2% of the total global warming effect in 1990: which placed it in the top ten contributing countries in the world. AFRICA CARBON EMISSION Africa's CO2 emissions from use of fossil fuels are low in relation to the rest of the world (3%), however total Africa’s emissions have been significantly increased (about 10 times in the last 60 years). Few nations account for the bulk of the region's fossil fuels emissions: 35 % Algeria, Egypt and Nigeria (combined) 42 % South Africa SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: low but increasing role!

  6. Land use change (fires, deforestation and degradation, conversion to crops) is Africa’s primary net source of carbon.

  7. Land Use Change Emissions Africa: 20% of global land use emission.

  8. FIRE EMISSIONS • Annual global fire carbon emissions: basically unknown, c.1.5 – 5.0 GtC a-1Africa: 1 GtC a-1 (around 40% of world’s emission)

  9. Sub-Saharan Africa and C-cycle:1- dominated by biogenic processes (linked to climate fluctuations)2- low anthropic influence With low fossil fuel emissions, Africa’s continental scale carbon fluxes are dominated by biogenic uptake and release from terrestrial ecosystems, as well as fires and deforestation (Williams et al., 2007).

  10. CARBOAFRICA Main Objectives • To set up and coordinate a first GHGs monitoring network of Sub-Saharan Africa, in order to: • better quantify GHGs emissions in Sub-Saharan Africa (considering also fires and deforestation) • better understand the role of fire emissions on the African GHGs balance and its global implications • better understand the Africa's role in the global climate system • improve the assessment of the land use change and evaluate the potential for carbon sequestration (CDM) • promote the integration of the environmental dimension in the African socio-economic context.

  11. CARBOAFRICA WorkPlan The work is organized in a multi-disciplinary integrated research approach through the division of main tasks in seven complementary work-packages. WP1: Observation system & data integration & consolidation WP2: Ecosystems processes understanding of carbon fluxes WP3: Modelling for up-scaling to region and continent WP4: Fire-Climate-Carbon cycle interactions WP5: Communications and Capacity Development WP6: Evaluation of a sustainable carbon sequestration WP7: Project Management

  12. stations for atmospheric measurements Eddy covariance sites already available in Africa Eddy covariance sites that will be established by CARBOAFRICA CARBOAFRICA THE NETWORK Carbon Flux network: 18 stations, of which 2 new (including the 1st in an African tropical forest, in Ghana) + 2 Atmospheric CO2 stations + Airborne campaigns (CARE experiment)

  13. Complexity of landscape

  14. CARBOAFRICA 1st Flux Tower in a African Tropical Forest Height: 72 m (around 30 m over the forest canopy!) The information provided by this flux station will give an important contribute to the understanding of the Africa’s role in the global carbon cycle.

  15. CARBOAFRICA Ecosystems Process Understanding CarboAfrica provides basic sites characterization through intense field campaigns (e.g. Sudan, Ghana, Congo, Zambia, South Africa) that are focusing on: - soil carbon properties - water relations - plant phenology - plant eco-physiology - exchanges of GHGs between soil and atmosphere.

  16. Roots exclusion technique (soil carbon) Soil samples are taken to the laboratory: all the soil was sieved and roots were removed from the soil cores Half of the sampled soil are placed to the nylon meshes with 1 mc openings and returned to the study site (Bulk Soil Respiration Rb). Another half of the samples are placed back without any barriers for the roots growing (Bulk Soil Respiration + Root Respiration Rbr).

  17. Standard type of technique to measure N2O and CH4 soil-atmosphere gas exchange Closed chamber – Gas Chromatographic analysis • Technique is simple • Can be handled by with short training • Needs many samples • Sample shipping within few days • Main costs associated to shipping Gas accumulation over time GC analysis Gas storage ECD, FID detectors VIALS

  18. Pre-Fire CARBOAFRICA Aerial Optical Video Aerial Thermal Video CarboAfrica and Fire 1- process satellite data and develop new algorithms to map dynamically the African burned areas 2- quantify the African the C emissions and the burnt biomass from fires (FRP) and the related GHG emissions and their regional and interannual variation 3- The fire experiment Post-Fire

  19. IR & Optical Video CARBOAFRICA The Fire Experiment The trace gases emitted, the fire spread, the Fire Radiative Energy (FRE), the smoke and fine particles production and the fuel consumption were measured on August 2007 in the Kruger National Park (South Africa). The fires were observed thought different techniques from remote platforms (helicopter and satellite) and at ground level (with instruments arranged along the perimeter of the plot and oriented downwind). This experiment will improve our understanding of: 1- the general fire process, 2- the fires role in the climate system, 3- the carbon and other GHGs emission form fires, 4- the biomass consumption in fires, 5- the relation between FRE and fuel consumption, 6- the fire spread prediction by models, 7- the satellite imagery interpretation.

  20. CARBOAFRICA Modelling activities are foreseen to generalize and up-scale the ecosystem level observations, estimating carbon balance, and its temporal variability, from local, to regional and continental scales. Modelling

  21. CARBOAFRICA Daily model output expected from four modelsBottom-up simulation by models indicate large intra-annual and inter-annual variation in Africa's ecosystem productivity.Both intra-annual (seasonal cycle) and inter-annual variability are strongly controlled by climate fluctuations and water availability.

  22. CARBOAFRICA CarboAfrica and Kyoto Protocol (CDM and REDD) 1- Specific regional studies in key areas are being conducted, considering both carbon sources and sinks, in order to evaluate the potential for carbon sequestration in Sub-Saharan Africa. Training on CDM opportunities will be provided to African stakeholders. 2- Specific researches to evaluate the potential for reducing emissions from avoided deforestation and forest degradation (post Kyoto 2012) in sub-Saharan Africa will be considered.

  23. Tropical Land Use Change:0.8±0.2to2.2±0.8PgC yr-1 Kyoto Target:0.5PgC yr-1 Deforestation and Kyoto Protocol AFRICA contribute about to 30% of total tropical land clearing from deforestation Santilli et al. 2003

  24. CARBOAFRICA Communication and capacity development FAO (through the GTOS programme) leads the communication and capacity development activities, dedicated to African institutions and stakeholders, to maximise the exploitation of the project’s achievements, and promote the integration of the environmental dimension in the social and economic context. For the 1st year of the project FAO and GTOS have already implemented: the project webpage www.carboafrica.net, the list of server, the for-monthly newsletters, and the project brochure in English and French. Other activities are: support to African students and organization of workshops and training courses.

  25. CARBOAFRICA CarboAfrica and GEO CARBOAFRICA contributes to the task EC-06-01 (Integrated Global Carbon Observation, IGCO) of the GEO 2007-2009 Work Plan, by improving the current global carbon observing network in an underrepresented region such as Africa. CARBOAFRICA will expand and coordinate the African observation system of old, current and future carbon data that will be harmonized and standardised through a common quality check and data processing. The data produced by CARBOAFRICA will be made freely available on the web. &

  26. Looking forward: CarboAfrica 2? • 1. Expand atmospheric and “in situ” network to increase representativeness • 2. Expand remote sensing capabilities (i.e. deforestation and forest degradation) • 3. Improve water nitrogen and carbon integration • 4. Improve socio-economic analysis of land-use changes • 5. Consider also and fossil fuel maps of mega-cities

  27. CARBOAFRICA WEB www.carboafrica.net Info: bombelli@unitus.it THANK YOU!

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