Geoprocessing Applied to the Assessment of Carbon Storage and Sequestration in a Brazilian Medium-Sized City

Abstract

The emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) is a cause for concern when seeking sustainable development in view of global warming. The multiple ecosystem services associated with land use and land cover are at the center of the global climate agenda, both as a mitigation and adaptation strategy to climate change and growing urbanization. Among these services is carbon storage and sequestration (CSS). It can remove GHG carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the form of organic matter, a natural carbon stock. Thus, to design projects that guarantee sustainable development, it is necessary to use metrics that can quantify the impact of sequestration on natural carbon stocks. We aimed to implement the InVEST CSS methodology in the region of Itaperuna-RJ (Brazil) to quantify the net change in carbon storage over time (sequestration and loss) between 2015 and 2020. The obtained total difference in carbon stocks between the analyzed maps was −39,103.56 × 103 kg C, which has an equivalent social cost of carbon of USD 16,559,187.69. This social value represents the social damage caused by releasing that amount of carbon into the atmosphere. This main result brings an important application for validating the InVEST CSS methodology in Brazil. Furthermore, it points out parameters that can help elaborate sustainable development policies.

Spatiotemporal Land Use and Land Cover Changes and Associated Runoff Impact in Itaperuna, Brazil

“…By concentrating on these two years, the objective was to highlight notable urban transformations relevant to the scope of the investigation. Additionally, building upon the methodological frame-work established in a prior study [29] that examined carbon storage and sequestration processes in Itaperuna during the same timeframe, this temporal focus enhances precision in identifying conspicuous alterations, such as urban expansion, emerging infrastructure, and substantial shifts in land use patterns. Consequently, the methodology adopted represents a systematically rigorous approach to scrutinizing the progression of urbanization, complementing the earlier research conducted by Felix et al [29].…”

“…This understanding is important in the planning, management, and sustainable development of water resources, especially considering the variations in watershed hydrological responses due to climate change [27,28]. Therefore, studying LULC changes and their impact on soil erosion and runoff at the watershed level is indispensable for effective urban water resource planning and management [29][30][31].…”