Climate

Fire-related carbon emissions from land use transitions in southern Amazonia

  1. R. S. DeFries1,
  2. D. C. Morton2,
  3. G. R. van der Werf3,
  4. L. Giglio2,
  5. G. J. Collatz4,
  6. J. T. Randerson5,
  7. R. A. Houghton6,
  8. P. K. Kasibhatla7,
  9. Y. Shimabukuro8

Article first published online: 25 NOV 2008

DOI: 10.1029/2008GL035689

Issue

Geophysical Research Letters

Geophysical Research Letters

Additional Information

How to Cite

DeFries, R. S., D. C. Morton, G. R. van der Werf, L. Giglio, G. J. Collatz, J. T. Randerson, R. A. Houghton, P. K. Kasibhatla, and Y. Shimabukuro (2008), Fire-related carbon emissions from land use transitions in southern Amazonia, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L22705, doi:10.1029/2008GL035689.

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA

  2. 2

    Department of Geography, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA

  3. 3

    Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, Department of Hydrology and Geo-Environmental Science, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands

  4. 4

    NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA

  5. 5

    Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, California, USA

  6. 6

    Woods Hole Research Center, Falmouth, Massachusetts, USA

  7. 7

    Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA

  8. 8

    Remote Sensing Division, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais, São José dos Campos, Brazil

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 25 NOV 2008
  2. Article first published online: 25 NOV 2008
  3. Manuscript Accepted: 14 OCT 2008
  4. Manuscript Revised: 5 OCT 2008
  5. Manuscript Received: 12 AUG 2008

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Keywords:

  • deforestation;
  • atmospheric carbon;
  • remote sensing

[1] Various land-use transitions in the tropics contribute to atmospheric carbon emissions, including forest conversion for small-scale farming, cattle ranching, and production of commodities such as soya and palm oil. These transitions involve fire as an effective and inexpensive means for clearing. We applied the DECAF (DEforestation CArbon Fluxes) model to Mato Grosso, Brazil to estimate fire emissions from various land-use transitions during 2001–2005. Fires associated with deforestation contributed 67 Tg C/yr (17 and 50 Tg C/yr from conversion to cropland and pasture, respectively), while conversion of savannas and existing cattle pasture to cropland contributed 17 Tg C/yr and pasture maintenance fires 6 Tg C/yr. Large clearings (>100 ha/yr) contributed 67% of emissions but comprised only 10% of deforestation events. From a policy perspective, results imply that intensification of agricultural production on already-cleared land and policies to discourage large clearings would reduce the major sources of emissions from fires in this region.

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