Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2026
07:27
Producing, Characterizing and Quantifying Biochar in the Woods Using Portable Flame Cap Kilns
Published on: January 5, 2024
Accounting for risk in valuing forest carbon offsets
Matthew D Hurteau1, Bruce A Hungate, George W Koch
1Department of Biological Sciences and Merriam-Powell Center for Environmental Research, PO Box 6077, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA. Matthew.Hurteau@nau.edu.
Carbon Balance and Management
|January 20, 2009
Summary
Forest carbon value should account for wildfire risk, as it varies by location and forest condition. Ignoring this risk overvalues forest carbon, impacting climate change mitigation strategies.
Area of Science:
- Forestry
- Climate Science
- Environmental Economics
Background:
- Forests sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide, mitigating global warming.
- US forest carbon stocks have increased, sequestering about 10% of annual emissions.
- Current carbon valuation methods do not account for disturbance risks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess how wildfire risk influences forest carbon value.
- To evaluate the spatial variation in risk-scaled forest carbon value across the U.S.
Main Methods:
- Incorporating wildfire risk into forest carbon valuation models.
- Analyzing the impact of forest location and condition on carbon value.
Main Results:
- Wildfire risk significantly reduces forest carbon value, varying by location and forest condition.
- A trend of decreasing risk-scaled forest carbon value is observed from northern to southern continental U.S.
Conclusions:
- Disturbance risk is a critical factor for long-term forest carbon storage.
- Carbon trading mechanisms must incorporate disturbance risk to accurately value forest carbon.
- Adjusting carbon values for disturbance risk is essential for effective climate change mitigation.
Related Concept Videos
01:20Actuarial Approach
The actuarial approach, a statistical method originally developed for life insurance risk assessment, is widely used to calculate survival rates in clinical and population studies. This method accounts for participants lost to follow-up or those who die from causes unrelated to the study, ensuring a more accurate representation of survival probabilities.
Consider the example of a high-risk surgical procedure with significant early-stage mortality. A two-year clinical study is conducted,...
Consider the example of a high-risk surgical procedure with significant early-stage mortality. A two-year clinical study is conducted,...
01:17Design Example: Analyzing Capacity Contours for Flood Risk Assessment
Flood risk assessment involves careful planning and analysis to ensure the safety of communities near water retention structures. Capacity contours are a vital tool in this process, as they illustrate the potential spread of water at specific levels in a given area. In the context of building a bund across a small valley, these contours play a critical role in evaluating the safety of nearby residential areas.In this example, the bund is intended to store stormwater in the valley. The engineers...
01:14The Carbon Cycle
Carbon is the basis of all organic matter on Earth, and is recycled through the ecosystem in two primary processes: one in which carbon is exchanged among living organisms, and one in which carbon is cycled over long periods of time through fossilized organic remains, weathering of rocks, and volcanic activity. Human activities, including increased agricultural practices and the burning of fossil fuels, has greatly affected the balance of the natural carbon cycle.
01:10Propagation of Uncertainty from Systematic Error
The atomic mass of an element varies due to the relative ratio of its isotopes. A sample's relative proportion of oxygen isotopes influences its average atomic mass. For instance, if we were to measure the atomic mass of oxygen from a sample, the mass would be a weighted average of the isotopic masses of oxygen in that sample. Since a single sample is not likely to perfectly reflect the true atomic mass of oxygen for all the molecules of oxygen on Earth, the mass we obtain from this particular...
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Biopharmaceutical studies constitute a vital field aiming to enhance drug delivery methods and refine therapeutic approaches, drawing upon diverse interdisciplinary knowledge. In research methodologies, the choice between controlled and non-controlled studies significantly influences the study's reliability and accuracy.
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...
01:25Strategies for Assessing and Addressing Confounding
Confounding is a critical issue in epidemiological studies, often leading to misleading conclusions about associations between exposures and outcomes. It occurs when the relationship between the exposure and the outcome is mixed with the effects of other factors that influence the outcome. Given that, addressing confounding is of high importance for drawing accurate inferences in research.
Confounding can be addressed at both the design phase of a study and through analytical methods after data...
Confounding can be addressed at both the design phase of a study and through analytical methods after data...