Valters Samariks

Title: Climate change and carbon in urban forests

Abstract of presentation: Forests are recognized as a major carbon storage in the long-term. The main carbon pools in the forest ecosystems are tree biomass, soils (especially organic soils), deadwood and litter, besides each of the pool is significant in the carbon cycle. Tree biomass is a large, dynamic, and manageable forest carbon pool, therefore forest management practices, in order to ensure carbon storage and other ecosystem services are essential, thus the (multifunctional) role of urban forests might become more significant.

The presentation will focus on future climate change and species distribution prognoses and expected changes in occurrence of natural disturbances. Moreover, carbon has been widely studied in forest ecosystems, however only few studies have carried out research of old-growth forests, but in Latvia we have gathered significant amount of data and knowledge for Europe. The presentation indicates carbon stock differences of mature and old-growth (forests), as well as differences in annual carbon sequestration potential and an insight of organic soil carbon stock and greenhouse gas emissions.

Biography: Valters is a scientific assistant at Latvian State Forest Research Institute “Silava”, and currently a PhD student in the field of forestry at Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies. Topic of his Ph.D. covers tree wind resistance determining parameters of root-system, carbon accumulation in tree biomass in old-growth forests, and greenhouse gas emissions from tree stems and soil. His current research projects are focusing on assessment of carbon turnover and greenhouse gas fluxes in broadleaved tree stands with consideration of internal stem decay.