T6. Biomass Stock of Forests

The information on “biomass stocks” is essential to assess the total and the annual capacity of “forests” and Other Wooded Land” to sequester carbon. The annual growth (capacity) defines their sustenance limits of use and management needs and opportunities.

A. Global Classification and Definitions (FRA 2005)

Above Ground Tree Biomass	The mass, expressed as oven-dry weight (including or excluding bark), of the woody parts (stem, bark, branches and twigs) of all living trees excluding stump and roots.
Below Ground Tree Biomass	The mass, expressed as oven-dry weight of below ground woody parts (includes all roots greater than 2 mm in diameter) of all living trees.
Woody Biomass Stock	The mass expressed as oven-dry weight (including bark) of the woody parts (stem, bark, branches and twigs) of all trees, alive and dead, shrubs and bushes, including stumps, roots, deadwood and litter.

Source: FAO. 2004. Terms and Definition FRA-2005. FRA Working paper 73. Rome

B. National Data Sources

Forest Survey of India (FSI) and Forest Research Institute (FRI) have jointly worked out the above ground growing stock, biomass and carbon stock in India’s forests using forest cover information of two assessment years – 1989 and 1997. These years respectively refer to the data or information year 1984 and 1994.. The biomass was calculated using specific gravity of dominant species in the particular strata Though the biomass calculation was carried out for various international communications but this data has not yet been published.

Information Year	Source
1984	SFR, 1989. State of Forest Report 1989. Forest Survey of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India.
1994	SFR, 1997. State of Forest Report 1997. Forest Survey of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India.
2000	SFR, 2001. State of Forest Report, 2001. Forest Survey of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India.

C. National Classification and Definitions

No standard national definitions

D. National Data

The following table presents the national data on above ground tree biomass in India. This basic information is derived from the State of Forest Report (SFR) of FSI.

Categories	Above Ground Tree Biomass in million ton
	1984	1994
Forests	2398.5	2395.4

E. Calibration

It is not required in this case.

F. Estimation and Forecasting

Forest Survey of India has calculated the above ground tree biomass based on forest cover assessment for the period 1984 and 1994 as mentioned above. Moreover, FSI has also estimated the growing stock for the country for the year 1990 based on the 1984 and 1994 figures. The figures for the year 2000 and 2005 are forecasted using regression estimates.

 

Categories	Above Ground Tree Biomass in million ton
	1990	2000	2005
Forests	2396.6	2554.7	2560.3

G. Reclassification into FRA 2005 Classes

Table: Reclassification (Percentage allocation) into FRA 2005 classes

National Classification	Percentage of a National Class to a FRA Class
	Woody	Above Ground	Below Ground
Above Ground Tree Biomass	-	100%	-

H. Information for FRA 2005 Global Tables

Table: Input to Global Reporting Tables

Biomass Stock in Forests	Biomass "million" metric tones (Oven Dry Weight)
	1990	2000	2005
Woody Biomass	-	-	-
Above Ground Tree Biomass	2396.6	2554.7	2560.3
Below Ground Tree Biomass	-	-	-

Appendix T6 to National Reporting Table 6

Item	Unit	Information
		1984	1994
1. Area over which Biomass has been measured	"000"ha	63880	63340
2. Average height of the stumps	cm	10 cm	10 cm
3. Minimum diameter (X) for “dead wood biomass” measurements		NA	NA
4. Stump biomass is in Above/Below Ground Tree Biomass	Above/Below	Below	Below
5. Whether biomass includes or excludes bark	Includes/Excludes	Includes	Includes
5. Have above threshold changed since 1990	Yes/No	No	No
6. If yes, then attach a separate note giving details of the change	Yes/No	NA	NA

Notes: Countries should provide details on their biomass expansion factors if any as an attachment to this Appendix