Spatiotemporal patterns and driving factors of carbon dynamics in forest ecosystems: A case study from Turkey

Evaluating the spatiotemporal patterns of carbon dynamics is critical for both understanding the role of forest ecosystems in the carbon cycle and developing effective forest policies to mitigate the impacts of climate change. This study analyzes the effects of spatiotemporal changes on carbon dynamics based on landscape structure for the Hisar Planning Unit, Turkey, using forest inventory data between 1973 and 2015. The total carbon stock increased from 1434.49 Gg in 1973 to 1919.37 Gg in 2015, an increase of 33.8%. The mean annual carbon storage was 11.54 Gg · year^-1 , including 4.28 Gg · year^-1 in biomass and 7.26 Gg · year^-1 in soil over four decades. The most significant carbon pool in the total carbon stock was from the soil, with 71.6%, 70.7%, and 69.4% of the total carbon storage in 1973, 1998, and 2015, respectively. Pure pine stands, overmature development stages, fully covered stands, and older forests were the prevailing factors affecting carbon density. The conversion from degraded (1442.47 ha, 14.85%), coppice (157.04 ha, 3.9%), and non-forest lands (1412.91 ha, 5.2%) to productive forests with afforestation or restoration activities significantly boosted the total carbon storage. Furthermore, increasing awareness and stewardship in forest management coupled with improved economic well-being reduced the pressure on the forests, leading to an increase in the quality of forest structure. These changes in landscape structure resulted in the heterogeneous distribution of carbon dynamics. In conclusion, understanding the spatiotemporal patterns of carbon dynamics is crucial for both forest managers and policy-makers in developing sustainable forest management practices and climate mitigation strategies for ecological sustainability and climate-smart forestry. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:209-223. © 2021 SETAC.