Question On Notice No. 401 asked in the Legislative Council on 10 October 2017 by Hon Diane Evers
Question Directed to the: Minister for Environment
Parliament: 40 Session: 1
Question
(1) I refer to the Conservation Commission of Western Australia’s Forest Management Plan (FMP) 2014-2023, and ask, what does the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) understand by "carbon carrying capacity"?
(2) Based on DBCA growth rate models and FullCAM, at what age does the carbon carrying capacity of karri regrowth reach the same carbon carrying capacity as that of old growth karri?
(3) Is the carbon carrying capacity the same, more, or less in areas of mixed karri (i.e., 2-8 mature karri trees per hectare) as in areas of pure karri (i.e., at least 8 mature karri trees per hectare)?
(4) Does this carbon carrying capacity account for loss of carbon:
(a) in the initial logging operation;
(b) in further logging or thinning operations; and
(c) following fire?
Answered on 28 November 2017
(1) The carbon carrying capacity of a forest is defined as the mass of carbon able to be stored in a forest ecosystem under prevailing environmental conditions and natural disturbance regimes, but excluding anthropogenic disturbance.
(2) to (4) The range in carbon carrying capacity across the karri forests was not modelled as part of the estimation of standing carbon stocks undertaken for the Forest Management Plan 2014-2023 (FMP).
The paper Estimating native carbon stocks prepared to support the release of the Draft Forest Management Plan 2014-2023 for public comment in 2012, describes the approach used to develop estimates of above and below-ground live tree carbon across forest ecosystems (including the variation between karri, karri /tingle and karri west coast forest ecosystems).