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Forests play an important role as carbon sinks by sequestrating carbon through photosynthesis. Thinning treatments have large impacts on carbon storage, in addition to strengthening quality and quantity of plantations. This study analyzed the effects of different thinning treatments on carbon stocks in both individual trees and stands of Taiwania (Taiwania cryptomerioides) plantations. Repeated field measurements and allometric equations were used to calculate total C storage and sequestration rates of live trees. The results of this study showed that the total carbon stock of stands with thinning treatments was less than that of the non-thinned stands. The non-thinned 23-year old stands had an estimated carbon stock of 96.8 Mg C ha−1, which is higher than the carbon stock found in either medium- (84.1 Mg C ha−1) or heavily-thinned (74.7 Mg C ha−1) treatment plots of the same age. If the objective of Taiwania plantations was to store large amounts of carbon in the young growth stage, without regard to the initial rate of storage, a better option is no-thinning. However, the medium thinned forests seem to be more promising for carbon sequestration than the no-thinned forests if a longer period is considered.

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Mushrooms, the edible fungi, contain some healthy compounds, such as polysaccharide and triterpenes, and low calorie. Therefore, the demand for mushrooms is gradually increased. The annual turnover of mushroom is around NT$ 13.3 billion, which is counted around 18% of the total vegetable production value (NT$ 73.3 billion) in Taiwan (Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan R.O.C., 2015). Currently, mushrooms are typically cultivated within a 3-D architectural structure inside air-conditioned facilities. Substrates used commonly in mushroom production include agricultural byproducts, such as cereal straw, rice, wheat, corn, and barley, cotton, cobs, husks, and pulp (Chang & Miles, 1989). After mushrooms are harvested, the spent mushroom substrate (SMS) becomes an agricultural wastes and by-products, which were estimated about 0.25 million tons per year in Taiwan. SMS has now be applied as compost,