Browsing by Author "Lyaruu, Herbert V.M."

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    Above-Ground Carbon Allometric Models for Diplorhynchus condylocarpon (Müll. Arg.) Pichon., A Common Miombo Woodland Associate
    (2015-07) Mganga, Nyatwere D.; Lyaruu, Herbert V.M.; Banyikwa, Feetham F.
    Estimation of carbon using allometric models facilitates sustainable management of forests and woodlands. Reliable estimations of carbon in most ecosystems can only be accomplished by using species-specific allometric models which are lacking for many species. The present study was carried out so as to develop the best fit above-ground carbon allometric models of various tree components; stems, branches, twigs and leaves of Diplorhynchus condylocarpon (Horn-pod tree), a species that is commonly associated with Miombo woodlands. Twenty one trees of D. condylocarpon with a ranging diameter at breast height (DBH) from 5 to 19 cm were destructively sampled from Miombo woodlands of Kitwe in Tanzania. Linear models were assessed for above-ground carbon using regression analysis. Regression analysis was carried out by relating above-ground carbon of tree components to DBH and height (H), using DBH and H as predictor variables. The best fit allometric models for above-ground carbon of total, stems, branches and twigs and/or leaves had coefficient of determination values (R2) of 0.98, 0.98, 0.96 and 0.79 respectively at P < 0.05. Above-ground carbon allometric models developed have wide application in sustainable use of the species and carbon accounting particularly in Central Zambezian Miombo woodlands without future destructive sampling.
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    Applicability of Satellite Remote Sensing in Accounting Above-Ground Carbon in Miombo Woodlands
    (2015-10) Mganga, Nyatwere D.; Lyaruu, Herbert V.M.
    The crisis of climate change has drawn attention of ecologists all over the world to explore ways that could effectively enhance the sequestration of carbon in forests and woodlands. This necessitates forest inventory, along with knowledge of techniques that are quick and manageable. The present study was carried out in Miombo woodlands of western Tanzania namely, Kitwe and Mgaraganza. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of remote sensing in estimating the stock of carbon in Miombo woodlands. Two types of data namely, ground-truthing and satellite imagery were used. Ground-truthing data were obtained by measuring the diameter at breast height (DBH) of all trees in 30 and 20 concentric plots in Kitwe and Mgaraganza forests, respectively. The average DBH of trees in each forest was fitted in biomass allometric models to estimate the ground-truthing vegetation biomass. On the other hand, Landsat images of the two forests were used to compute the Normalised Vegetation Index (NDVI). The computed NDVI were regressed with the ground-truthing vegetation biomass to get the remotely sensed vegetation biomass which was assumed to be 50% carbon. The coefficients of determination between the ground-truthing above-ground biomass and the NDVI values were statistically significant at P<0.05. The above-ground carbon stock obtained by ground-truthing in Mgaraganza and Kitwe forests was 3 and 2 times higher than that of satellite remotely sensed data respectively. The above-ground carbon stock obtained from satellite remote sensing gives some impression thus a basis for remote sensing in Miombo woodlands