Assessing Carbon Stocks and Modelling Win-win Scenarios of Carbon Sequestration Through Land-use Changes

The purpose of this report is to present a methodology for evaluating watershed land use and land management scenarios with regard to carbon stocks, biodiversity, and land degradation for the purpose of instituting land use practices that will enhance soil fertility, land productivity, and carbon sequestration. This methodology includes the following components: carbon stock assessment of aboveground and belowground biomass; comparative carbon sequestration estimations of actual land use scenario and potential land use scenarios using computer models; assessment of suitable land uses based on topography, climate, soil type and fertility, wetness, and other factors; computation of physical, biological, and chemical land degradation; use of an analytical hierarchy process model to determine potential land use scenarios. This methodology was tested at three sites, two in Mexico and one in Cuba. The case study results are included in this report.