No description available.

Thesis (MFor (Forest and Wood Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / The aim of this study was to develop biomass prediction models for the determination of total aboveground biomass for mopane at three (3) study sites in Botswana. Thereafter, based on the pooled data from the three (3) study sites, recommend one cross-site biomass prediction model that could be used for the indirect estimation of the total aboveground biomass for mopane in Botswana. All the data were collected by destructive sampling from three (3) study sites in Botswana. Stratified random sampling was based on the stem diameter at breast height (1.3 m from the ground). A total of 30 sample trees at each study site were measured, felled and weighed. The 30 sample trees were distributed equally between six DBH classes (Five sample trees per DBH class). Thereafter, using the data from these sample trees, site-specific biomass prediction models for the indirect estimation of total aboveground biomass for mopane were developed as a function of the following independent variables: stem diameter at 0.15 m from the ground; stem diameter at 1.3 m from the ground; stem diameter at 3 m from the ground; crown diameter; and total tree height. The data from the sites were pooled together to develop cross-site biomass prediction models as a function of the given independent variables. The biomass prediction model that provided the best fit at Serule was a linear equation estimated by means of the stem diameter at 1.3 m, while in Sexaxa the biomass prediction model that provided the best fit was estimated by means of the stem diameter at 0.15 m. The biomass prediction model that provided the best fit at the Tamacha site was estimated by means of the stem diameter at 1.3 m. On the basis of the collected data, cross-site biomass prediction models were developed. The cross-site biomass prediction model that provided the best fit was developed from the stem diameter at 1.3 m. This relationship was adopted as the prediction model for the indirect biomass estimation of Colophospermum mopane (mopane) in Botswana.

From 1970 to 2010, circa 78% of the Greenhouse gases emissions came from the emissions of CO2 derived from industrial processes and fossil fuel combustion. The fossil energy resources (coal, oil and natural gas) increase the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere causing diverse changes related to global warming. Despite policies adopted to mitigate the climate change, global warming is not decreased. This literature review will analyze and investigate the use of forest biomass to replace fossil fuel energy and how it can affect climate change. This study used secondary data to identify the main perspectives in the use of forest biomass to produce energy. The policies at the global, regional and national level are also described. How the national level is influenced by the international and regional level and how the policies match with the current knowledge on the theme. The results showed that the use of forest biomass was better to replace coal than natural gas or oil, due to the payback time. The use of old-growth forests or natural forest increases the time to the released emissions to be offset. Residues showed to have faster payback time than other forest biomass, as well as, the use of this biomass avoid cut down trees. However, the use of residues can cause serious impacts, as biodiversity loss. The conclusion was that the use of biomass will increase the CO2 emissions, whether all emissions are included. Despite the payback time is faster to forest biomass than fossil fuel, biomass is not a good alternative to replace fossil fuel energy. Because of the combustion efficiency of biomass is less than fossil fuel to produce the same amount the energy. Regarding the policies, there are contradictions between the international and regional level about the use of forests. As also, regional level has contradictions in their criteria that should be avoided. If the forest biomass has to be use, this study recommended the use of residues. / <p>20180619</p>

Submitted by M?rden L?les (marden.inacio@ufvjm.edu.br) on 2016-07-20T19:16:36Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Eduarda_Gabriela_Santos_Cunha.pdf: 1983745 bytes, checksum: d73e76b249ad6c1b32a34d0755d35679 (MD5) / Rejected by Rodrigo Martins Cruz (rodrigo.cruz@ufvjm.edu.br), reason: renomear arquivo on 2016-07-21T16:57:59Z (GMT) / Submitted by M?rden L?les (marden.inacio@ufvjm.edu.br) on 2016-07-21T17:39:15Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Eduarda_Gabriela_Santos_Cunha.pdf: 1983745 bytes, checksum: d73e76b249ad6c1b32a34d0755d35679 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Rodrigo Martins Cruz (rodrigo.cruz@ufvjm.edu.br) on 2016-07-22T15:39:40Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Eduarda_Gabriela_Santos_Cunha.pdf: 1983745 bytes, checksum: d73e76b249ad6c1b32a34d0755d35679 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-22T15:39:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Eduarda_Gabriela_Santos_Cunha.pdf: 1983745 bytes, checksum: d73e76b249ad6c1b32a34d0755d35679 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior (CAPES) / RESUMO CUNHA, E. G. S. Quantifica??o de biomassa em floresta estacional semidecidual por meio de redes neurais artificiais. 2015. 77 p. (Disserta??o ? Ci?ncia Florestal) ? Universidade Florestal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri, Diamantina, 2015. A predi??o de biomassa em florestas naturais ? complexa devido ? varia??o de esp?cies, de est?gio sucessional, caracter?sticas ed?ficas e clim?ticas das ?reas, dentre outras, e isso gera uma grande demanda de informa??es para que se tenha estimativas de biomassa confi?veis. O objetivo deste estudo foi de quantificar a biomassa arb?rea a?rea de um fragmento de floresta Estacional Semidecidual em Minas Gerais - MG por meio de redes neurais artificiais (RNA). Assim como, avaliar a influ?ncia das vari?veis categ?ricas fitofisionomia (FT), infesta??o de cip? (CP), qualidade de copa (QC) e coeficiente de De Liocourt (q) na estimativa de biomassa. Foi empregada a t?cnica de valida??o cruzada (cross-validation) para defini??o da topologia e valida??o das redes, em que a estimativa de erro global ? calculada como a m?dia das k estimativas de erro de cada itera??o (admitiu-se k=10).Variou-se o n?mero de neur?nios na camada escondida e avaliou-se a m?dia e o desvio padr?o do erro m?dio quadr?tico (EMQ) dos resultados da valida??o cruzada para definir o n?mero de neur?nios na camada escondida, que melhor se adequou ao problema. Para definir a RNA mais adequada para cada situa??o, uma nova valida??o cruzada foi realizada e avalia??o se deu pelos ajustes das RNA (EMQ, ? ,Bias e Vari?ncia) e an?lise gr?fica dos res?duos. A biomassa observada m?dia foi de 110,81 t.ha-1 e a biomassa m?dia estocada por hectare foi estimada em 114,41 t.ha-1 pela RNA 3 e 116,34 t.ha-1 pela RNA 7. As RNA 3(vari?veis de entrada: DAP, d, Hf, Vt, CP) e 7(vari?veis de entrada: DAP, d, Ht, Vt, CP, QC) se ajustaram melhor, obtendo menores res?duos. No entanto, a RNA 7 que cont?m CP e QC associadas como vari?vel de entrada da rede, teve bom desempenho devido ? contribui??o da vari?vel CP, visto que a RNA 4 que cont?m apenas QC n?o foi precisa na maioria das parcelas, esse fato pode estar relacionado a maior subjetividade na avalia??o da qualidade de copa. A RNA 3 foi mais adequada visando simplicidade na coleta de campo, acarretando menor tempo e custo. / Disserta??o (Mestrado) ? Programa de P?s-Gradua??o em Ci?ncia Florestal, Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri, 2015. / ABSTRACT CUNHA, E. G. S. Biomass quantification in semideciduous forest through artificial neural networks. 2015. 77 p. (Disserta??o ? Ci?ncia Florestal) ? Universidade Florestal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri, Diamantina, 2015. The prediction of biomass in natural forests is complex due to the variation of species in successional stages, characteristics of soil and climate of areas, among other things, and this generates a large demand for information in order to produce reliable biomass estimates. This study aimed to quantify the aerial tree biomass from a fragment of semideciduous forest in Minas Gerais - MG through artificial neural networks (ANN). Moreover, this study evaluated the influence of categorical variables including phytophysiognomy, vine infestation, canopy quality and the De Liocourt quotient in estimation of biomass. All the analysis was done using R software, using the cross-validation technique to define the topology and validation of networks, wherein the global error estimate is calculated as the average of k error estimates of each iteration (assuming k = 10). The number of neurons in the hidden layer varied, and the mean and standard deviation of the mean square error (MSE) were evaluated by the results of cross-validation in order to determine the number of neurons in the hidden layer, which best adapted to the problem. To determine the most appropriate ANN in each situation, a new cross-validation was conducted and the evaluation was completed using the results of the ANN (MSE, Correlation coefficient, Bias and Variance) and graphical residue analysis. The average observed biomass was 110.81 t.ha-1 and the average stored biomass per hectare was estimated to be 114.41 t.ha-1 using ANN 3 and 116.34 t.ha-1 using 7 ANN. This study found that the ANN 3 (input: DAP, d, Hf, Vt, CP) and 7(input: DAP, d, Ht, Vt, CP, QC) had greater precision than the other ANNs, obtaining smaller residue. However, due to the association of vine infestation and crown quality in ANN 7 as input variable network, the good performance possibly because of the variable contribution of the vine infestation, whereas ANN 4 which contains only canopy quality was not more accurate in the majority of plots, this may be related to greater subjectivity in assessing the canopy quality, and in this way. ANN 3 was more appropriate in terms of simplifying field sampling, leading to reduced time and cost.

Submitted by Jos? Henrique Henrique (jose.neves@ufvjm.edu.br) on 2018-06-25T20:55:36Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) demerson_luiz_almeida_barbosa.pdf: 1831298 bytes, checksum: 82c8ae9507b56ac9f73a9ab0bb6fec79 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Rodrigo Martins Cruz (rodrigo.cruz@ufvjm.edu.br) on 2018-07-18T12:37:53Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) demerson_luiz_almeida_barbosa.pdf: 1831298 bytes, checksum: 82c8ae9507b56ac9f73a9ab0bb6fec79 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-18T12:37:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) demerson_luiz_almeida_barbosa.pdf: 1831298 bytes, checksum: 82c8ae9507b56ac9f73a9ab0bb6fec79 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017 / Funda??o de Amparo ? Pesquisa do estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) / Os sistemas integrados de produ??o s?o uma possibilidade para otimiza??o do cultivo sustent?vel no semi?rido mineiro, principalmente em rela??o ?s ?reas de pastagens degradadas. Objetivou-se com esse trabalho analisar quantitativamente e qualitativamente o crescimento, a produ??o e o estoque de carbono (C) de dois gen?tipos de eucalipto em sistema de integra??o lavoura-pecu?ria-floresta (iLPF) implantado no norte de Minas Gerais. Essa pesquisa foi realizada na Fazenda da Barra, munic?pio de Francisco S?, entre dezembro de 2012 e novembro de 2016. Foi conduzida em ?rea experimental de 3,2 ha subdividida em dois tratamentos com Eucalyptus cloeziana e o h?brido urograndis. O sistema foi consorciado com sorgo e capim-marandu, com espa?amentos em renques duplos (2 x 3m) x 14 metros. Em cada tratamento foram estabelecidas 12 parcelas de 336 m2 distribu?das aleatoriamente, com inclus?o de 24 ?rvores/parcela. Foram avaliadas taxas de sobreviv?ncia, di?metro na altura do solo, di?metro na altura do peito e altura total das ?rvores, al?m de danos e debilidades. Tamb?m foram analisados volume, biomassa, fixa??o de C e sequestro de di?xido de C (CO2). Os dados foram submetidos ? an?lise de vari?ncia e de matriz de correla??o. Os resultados indicaram que a abelha arapu? e o cupim foram os principais fatores bi?ticos causadores dos danos e debilidades nos eucaliptos cloeziana e urograndis, respectivamente. O crescimento e volume dos gen?tipos foram estatisticamente diferentes para os 450, 630, 1.020 e 1.320 dias ap?s o transplantio. O urograndis, embora tenha apresentado menor taxa de sobreviv?ncia (66,7%), obteve maior volume (23,4920 m3 ha-1) e resist?ncia ao per?odo de seca. No entanto, o E. cloeziana apresentou maior taxa de sobreviv?ncia (80,6%) e menor volume (9,2974 m3 ha-1). Os incrementos correntes anuais para biomassa foram maiores no urograndis (5.673,36 kg ha-1) em rela??o ao cloeziana (3.166,04 kg ha-1). Dessa maneira, o eucalipto urograndis foi o gen?tipo que apresentou maior fixa??o de C (5,53 t ha-1) e sequestro de CO2 (20,30 t ha-1) no sistema de integra??o lavoura-pecu?ria-floresta avaliado. / Disserta??o (Mestrado) ? Programa de P?s-Gradua??o em Ci?ncia Florestal, Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri, 2017. / Integrated production systems are cited as a possibility for optimization of sustainable cultivation in the semi-arid region of Minas Gerais, especially in relation to degraded pasture areas. The objective of this work was to analyze quantitatively and qualitatively the growth, production and carbon stocks of two eucalyptus genotypes cultivated in an integrated crop-livestock-forest (ICLF) system in the north of Minas Gerais State, Brazil. This research was carried out at Fazenda da Barra, municipality of Francisco S?, between December 2012 and November 2016. It was conducted in a 3.2 ha experimental area subdivided into two treatments with Eucalyptus cloeziana and the urograndis hybrid. The system was intercropped with sorghum and marandu grass, with spacing in double rows (2 x 3m) x 14 m. In each treatment, 12 plots of 336 m2 were randomly distributed, including 24 trees/plot. Survival rates, diameter at soil height, diameter at breast height and total height of trees, as well as damage and weakness, were evaluated. Volumetric and biomass production, carbon (C) fixation and C dioxide sequestration (CO2) were also analyzed. Data were submitted to analysis of variance and correlation matrix. The results indicate that the ?arapu?? (Trigona spinipes) bee and the termite were the main biotic factors to the damages and weaknesses in eucalyptus cloeziana and urograndis, respectively. The growth and volumetric production of the genotypes were statistically different for the 450, 630, 1020 and 1,320 days after transplanting. Urograndis, although reaching the higher mortality rate (66.7%), had the higher volumetry production (23.4920 m3 ha-1) and resistance to the dry seasons. However, E. cloeziana had a higher survival rate (80.6%) and lower volumetric production (9.2974 m3 ha-1). The mean annual increment for biomass were higher in urograndis (5,673.36 kg ha-1) than in cloeziana (3,166.04 kg ha-1). Thus, eucalyptus urograndis was the genotype that presented higher C fixation (5.53 t ha-1) and CO2 sequestration (20.30 t ha-1) in the ICLF system evaluated.

Este trabalho teve como objetivo produzir e ensaiar painéis OSB (Oriented Strand Board) com resíduo de madeira Balsa (Ochroma Pyramidale) proveniente de reflorestamento, aglomerados com resinas uréia-formaldeído (UF), fenol-formaldeido (FF) e poliuretana à base de óleo mamona (PU-Mamona), e os caracterizar por meio de ensaios termo-físico-mecânicos e microestruturais. A escolha da madeira Balsa residual ocorreu devido a fatores como baixa densidade, alta resistência específica, elevada taxa de crescimento e disponibilidade de matéria-prima. Inicialmente as partículas de madeira Balsa foram caracterizadas por ensaios físicos, químicos (densidade por picnometria de gás hélio, pH e composição química) e microestruturais (microscopia eletrônica de varredura - MEV, espectroscopia de infra-vermelho - FTIR, Difração de Raios-X - DRX e termogravimetria - TG). As resinas foram caracterizadas por ensaios microestruturais (DRX, FTIR e TG-DSC). A partir dessas informações foram produzidos painéis de madeira Balsa em escala laboratorial de baixa e média dendidade com partículas do tipo strand de resíduo de madeira Balsa aglomerado com as referidas resinas, os quais foram caracterizados por ensaios físicos (inchamento em espessura, absorção de água e densidade aparente), mecânicos (flexão estática e adesão interna), microestruturais (MEV, FTIR, DRX e TG-DSC) e ensaios de condutividade térmica. Os resultados obtidos foram comparados com as indicações da norma européia EN 300:2006 e indicaram que apenas os painéis OSB de madeira Balsa residual aglomerada com resina poliuretana à base de óleo de mamona atendem os requisitos estabelecidos para painéis OSB de Classe 1 de uso interno e não-estrutural. / The objective of this work was to produce and test OSB (Oriented Strand Board) with residual wood balsa (Ochroma Pyramidale) from reforestation, agglomerated with urea-formaldehyde (UF) resins, phenol-formaldehyde (FF) and oil-based polyurethane castor bean (PU-Mamona), and characterize them by means of thermo-physical-mechanical and microstructural tests. The choice of residual Balsa wood occurred due to factors such as low density, high specific strength, high growth rate and availability of raw material. Initially the particles of Balsa wood were characterized by physical, chemical tests (density by helium gas picnometry, pH and chemical composition) and microstructural (Scanning Electron Microscopy - SEM, infrared spectroscopy - FTIR, X- Ray Diffraction DRX and Thermogravimetry - TG). The resins were characterized by microstructural tests (XRD, FTIR and TG-DSC). Based on this prior information, OSB wood panels were produced in laboratory scale of low and medium density with strand type particles of wood residue Balsa agglomerated with refered resins, which were characterized by physical tests (swelling in thickness, absorption of water and (static flexural and internal adhesion), microstructural (SEM, FTIR, XRD and TG-DSC) and thermal conductivity tests. The results obtained were compared to the European standard EN 300: 2006 and indicated that only OSB panels of wood Residual Balsa agglomerated with polyurethane resin based on castor oil comply with the requirements established for Class 1 OSB panels for internal and non-structural use.

O objetivo deste estudo foi desenvolver e validar modelos preditores para a fitomassa epigéa da mata atlântica, formação vegetal que cobre a Serra do Mar no estado de São Paulo. Em duas parcelas de 100m2, 82 árvores foram cortadas, ao nível do solo, e anotadas suas medidas de altura e diâmetro. As folhas foram separadas dos ramos para determinação do peso fresco da porção foliar e lenhosa. Amostras de cada fração foram secas em estufa a 80o C, até peso constante, para determinação do peso seco. As árvores foram distribuídas em duas amostras aleatórias, sendo uma utilizada para o desenvolvimento das equações de regressão, e a outra para validá-las. Os modelos foram desenvolvidos através da análise de regressão linear simples e múltipla, tendo como variável dependente o peso seco (PS) e, como variáveis independentes a altura (h), o diâmetro (d) e o (d2h). A análise de validação foi feita através do coeficiente de correlação de Pearson, teste t-Sudent pareado e através do erro padrão da estimativa. As melhores equações para estimar o peso seco das árvores foram: lnPS = -4,1519 + 1,06068 ln d2h (r2=0,82; sy/x= 0,42; ricc=0,92); lnPS = -6,7171 + 1,30308 ln d2h (r2=0,88; sy/x= 0,44; ricc=0,93) e lnPS = -6,80067 + 3,77738 ln d (r2=0,92; sy/x =0,37; ricc=0,87). / The purpose of this study was develop and validate equations to estimative the aboveground phytomass of the Atlantic Forest, at the Serra do Mar, São Paulo, Southeast Brazil. In two available plots of 100m2, 82 trees were cut down at ground level. From each tree height and diameter was determined. Leaves and woody material were separated in order to determine their fresh weights in field conditions. Samples of each fraction were oven dried at 80o C to constant weight to determine their dry weight. The trees data were divided into two random samples. One sample was used for the development of the regression equations, and the validation was done using other one. The models were developed using single and multiple linear regression analysis, where the dependent variable was the dry mass and the independent variables were height (h), diameter (d) and d2h. The validation was done using Pearson correlation coefficient, paired t-Student test and standard error of estimation. The best equations to estimate aboveground phytomass were: lnPS = -4,1519 + 1,06068 ln d2 h (r2=0,82; sy/x= 0,42; ricc=0,92); lnPS = -6,7171 + 1,30308 ln d2h (r2=0,88; sy/x= 0,44; ricc=0,93) and lnPS = -6,80067 + 3,77738 ln d (r2=0,92; sy/x =0,37; ricc=0,87).

Forests are an important component in the earth system. They cover nearly one third of the land surface, store about as much carbon as the entire atmosphere and host more than half of the planet’s biodiversity. Forests provide ecosystem services such as climate regulation and water cycling and they supply resources. However, forests are increasingly at risk worldwide, due to anthropogenic deforestation, degradation and climate change. Concepts for counteracting this development require abilities to monitor forests and predict possible future developments. Given the vast size of forest cover along with the variety of forest types, field measurements and experiments alone cannot provide the solution for this task. Remote sensing and forest modeling enable a broader and deeper understanding of the processes that shape our planet’s forests. Remote sensing from airborne and spaceborne platforms can provide detailed measurements of forest attributes ranging from landscape to global scale. The challenge is to interpret the measurements in an appropriate way and derive biophysical properties. This requires a good understanding of the interaction between radiation and the vegetation. Forest models are tools that synthesize our knowledge about processes, such as tree growth, competition, disturbances and mortality. They allow simulation experiments which go beyond the spatial and temporal scales of field experiments. In this thesis, several major challenges in forest ecology and remote sensing were addressed. The main variable of interest was forest biomass, as it is the most important variable for forest carbon mapping and for understanding the role of vegetation in the global carbon cycle. For the purpose of biomass estimation, remote sensing derived canopy height and structure measurements were combined with field data, forest simulations and remote sensing simulations. The goals were: 1) to integrate remote sensing measurements into a forest model; 2) to understand the effects of spatial scale and disturbances on biomass estimation using a variety of remote sensing metrics; 3) to develop approaches for quantifying biomass changes over time with remote sensing and 4) to overcome differences among forest types by considering several structural aspects in the biomass estimation function. In the first study, a light detection and ranging (lidar) simulator was developed and integrated in the forest model FORMIND. The model was parameterized for the tropical rainforest on Barro Colorado Island (BCI, Panama). The output of the lidar simulator was validated against real airborne lidar data from BCI. Undisturbed and disturbed forests were simulated with FORMIND to identify the most well suited lidar metric for biomass estimation. The objective hereby was to achieve a low normalized root mean squared error (nRMSE) over the entire range of forest structures caused by disturbances and succession. Results identified the mean top-of-canopy height (TCH) as the best lidar-derived predictor. The accuracy strongly depended on spatial scale and relative errors < 10% could be achieved if the spatial resolution of the produced biomass map was ≥ 100 m and the spatial resolution of the remote sensing input was ≤ 10 m. These results could provide guidance for biomass mapping efforts. In the second study, forest simulations were used to explore approaches for estimating changes in forest biomass over time based on observed changes in canopy height. In an ideal situation, remote sensing provides measurements of canopy height above ground which allows the estimation of biomass stocks and changes. However, this requires sensors which are able to detect canopy surface and terrain elevation, and some sensors can only detect the surface (e.g., X-band radar). In such cases, biomass change has to be estimated from height change using a direct relationship. Unfortunately, such a relationship is not constant for forests in different successional stages, which can lead to considerable biases in the estimates of biomass change. A solution to this problem was found, where missing information of canopy height was compensated by integrating metrics of canopy texture. Applying this improved approach enables estimations of biomass losses and gains after disturbances at 1-ha resolution. In mature forests with very small changes in height and biomass all tested approaches have limited capabilities, as was revealed by an application using TanDEM-X derived canopy height from BCI. In the third study, a general biomass estimation function, which links remote sensing-derived structure metrics to forest biomass, was developed. General in this context means that it can be applied in different forest types and different biomes. For this purpose a set of predictor metrics was explored, with each predictor representing one of the following structural aspects: mean canopy height, maximal possible canopy height, maximal possible stand density, vertical canopy structure and wood density. The derived general equation resulted in almost equally accurate biomass estimates across the five considered sites (nRMSE = 12.4%, R² = 0.74) as site-specific equations (nRMSE = 11.7%, R²= 0.77). The contributions of the predictors provide a better understanding of the variability in the height-to-biomass relationship observed across forest types. The thesis has laid foundations for a close link between remote sensing, forest modeling and forest inventories. Several ongoing projects carry this further, by 1) disentangling and quantifying the uncertainty in biomass remote sensing, 2) trying to predict forest productivity based on structure and 3) detecting single trees from lidar to be used as forest model input. These methods can in the future lead to an integrated forest monitoring and information system, which assimilates remote sensing measurements and produces predictions about forest development. Such tools are urgently needed to reduce the risks forests are facing worldwide.

Human activities are a major driver of biodiversity degradation and loss, especially in tropical forest areas, where forest-fringe towns and villages depend on the forests for their livelihoods. In order to reduce threats that human activities pose to biodiversity, livelihoods support programs are employed as economic incentives for biodiversity conservation. These programs support the livelihoods activities of local communities, with the aim of triggering favorable attitudes and behaviors towards conservation, and ultimately reduce biodiversity degradation. Their effectiveness as conservation tools has not been evaluated. I investigated the effects of livelihoods programs on conservation attitudes and the consequent effects on biodiversity in the Afadjato-Agumatsa and Atewa forest areas in southeastern Ghana. The study areas are coupled human and natural systems, which are excellent for research in the theoretical framework of biocomplexity in the environment. Using literature reviews and field visits, I documented the specific livelihoods support activities (LSAs) used for biodiversity conservation, their historical trend and geographical distribution in Ghana. I used ex-post costbenefit analysis to determine socio-economic estimates of the LSAs in the two forest areas. Since communities were not randomly assigned to the interventions, I employed quasi-experimental design to evaluate the effects of LSAs on environmental attitudes. I evaluated the effect of conservation attitudes on biodiversity at two levels. These levels included 1) functional biodiversity at the landscape level represented by mean Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) of forest; and 2) compositional biodiversity at the species level represented by species diversity of fruit bats. iv The earliest record of LSAs used for biodiversity conservation in Ghana was in 1993. I identified 71 different activities belonging to eight categories. Some of these activities are beekeeping, animal husbandry, crop farming, and snail rearing. Most LSA programs have been in northern Ghana. There was an increasing tendency to make LSAs part of every conservation program in Ghana and this satisfies the current policy of collaborative conservation. The socio-economic estimates of LSAs included: 1) capital investment; 2) net socio-economic benefits; and 3) the benefit-cost ratio. The per-community values of the three estimates were not different between the two study areas. The per capita values of capital investment and net economic benefit were not significantly different between the two study areas. However, benefitcost ratio per capita was higher in Afadjato-Agumatsa than in Atewa. Estimates of economic returns from LSAs were marginal but the perceptions of success were relatively high. Environmental attitudes in LSA communities and non-LSA communities were not significantly different, and this was confirmed by an estimate of infinitesimal effects of LSAs on forest conservation attitudes. Among LSA communities, benefit-cost ratio of LSAs predicted favorable forest conservation attitudes; and change in pro-conservation attitudes were significantly higher in communities that had active LSAs than in communities which had no active LSA. Mean NDVI of the forests decreased from 1991 to 2000 and decreased further but at a slower rate to 2010. Higher forest conservation attitudes predicted higher mean NDVI in 2010. Higher change in mean NDVI from 1991 to 2000 predicted higher change in mean NDVI from 2000 to 2010. Eleven of the 13 fruit bat species in Ghana were recorded in the study areas. Longer v distances between a local community and its forest predicted higher species diversity of forestspecialist fruit bats. The results indicate that LSAs have become a major contribution to Ghana’s current collaborative forest policy. The fact that perceptions of LSA success were moderate even though the economic returns from them were marginal suggest that other factors such as provision of employment, training in new skills and community cohesion played a part in how communities viewed the success as LSAs. Evaluations of conservation attitudes suggest that just participating in LSAs did not improve attitudes; but higher benefit-cost ratio predicted favorable conservation attitudes, and conservation attitudes were higher in communities that sustained their LSAs. Therefore, it may serve biodiversity conservation to invest in LSAs that can be sustained and involve the least costs to local communities. Primary production of the forests, a proxy for a functional habitat, continued to decrease. Preventing communities from locating closer to forests could improve fruit bat diversity, which contributes to natural forest regeneration. Improving conservation attitudes should be an objective of conservation at the landscape scale. On the basis of the results, I developed a conceptual model for forest biodiversity conservation in a biocomplexity framework. This model could be useful for evaluating conservation in tropical forest areas. Lessons from this study can be applied in other incentive-based conservation programs such as payments for ecosystem services systems and carbon market schemes. I suggest that this study be repeated after a decade and that other socio-political and biogeochemical variables be integrated into future studies.

Global warming and climate change are closely related to the amount of CO2 in the air. Forest ecosystem plays very important role in the global carbon cycle; CO2 from the atmosphere is taken up by vegetation and stored as plant biomass. Therefore, quantifying biomass and carbon sequestration in tropical forests has a significant concern within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), Kyoto Protocol and Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) program for the purpose of the improvement of national carbon accounting as well as for addressing the potential areas for carbon credits, basis for payment for environmental services. The aim of research is to estimate biomass and carbon stocks in tropical forests using remote sensing data for dry forest of central highlands of Vietnam. This result showed that from satellite images of the SPOT, satellites could build the land cover map, carbon map and biomass map of Yok Don National Park, Central Highlands of Vietnam. Through which also the biomass (above ground biomass and below ground biomass) of each type of forest can be calculated. For instance the biomass of the dry forest (Dry Dipterocarp Forest) is 153.49 tones x ha-1, biomass of rich forest is 343.35 tones x ha-1, biomass of medium forest is 210.34 tones x ha-1 and biomass of poor forest & scrub are 33.56 tones x ha-1. / Sự ấm lên toàn cầu và biến đổi khí hậu có liên quan chặt chẽ với tổng lượng CO2 trong không khí. Hệ sinh thái rừng có vai trò rất quan trọng trong chu trình các bon toàn cầu; khí CO2 trong khí quyển được hấp thụ bởi thảm thực vật dưới dạng sinh khối. Vì vậy, việc xác định sinh khối và carbon tích trữ trong rừng nhiệt đới đã có được sự quan tâm đáng kể trong Công ước của Liên hiệp quốc về biến đổi khí hậu (UNFCC), Nghị định thư Kyoto và Chương trình giảm phát thải từ phá rừng và suy thoái rừng (REDD) gần đây, nhằm cho mục đích cải thiện việc tính toán lượng các bon tích trữ cũng như giải quyết các vấn đề tiềm năng cho tín dụng các bon, làm cơ sở cho việc thanh toán cho các dịch vụ môi trường. Mục đích của nghiên cứu này là ước lượng sinh khối và các bon lưu trữ trong các khu rừng nhiệt đới bằng cách sử dụng dữ liệu viễn thám, mà ở nghiên cứu này là cho rừng khộp Tây Nguyên của Việt Nam. Kết quả cho thấy rằng, từ ảnh vệ tinh SPOT có thể xây dựng bản đồ lớp phủ thực vật, bản đồ các bon và bản độ sinh khối của Vườn quốc gia Yok Đôn, Tây Nguyên Việt Nam. Qua đó đã tính toán được sinh khối (bao gồm cả trên mặt đất và dưới mặt đất) như: đối với sinh khối của rừng khô cây họ dầu (Dry Dipterocarp Forest) là 153,59 tấn/ha, sinh khối rừng giàu là 343,35 tấn/ha, sinh khối rừng trung bình là 210,34 tấn/ha và sinh khối rừng nghèo&cây bụi là 33,56 tấn/ha.