The spatial distribution of forest biomass in China using remote sensing and national forest inventory

The objective of this study is to retrieve a spatially-explicit map of forest biomass, which is not only an important parameter to evaluate carbon storage but also a necessary initial value for process-based carbon cycle models to simulate carbon dynamics within a region. In this study, we used the latest eighth national forest inventory statistics (2009-2013) and the MODIS Land Cover Type product (MCD12C1) to estimate current spatial distribution of forest biomass in China at 0.05° resolution using a straight-forward downscaling method. The results showed that the total stock of forest biomass in China has increased remarkably to 13.1Pg. The forest biomass in China has a clear spatial pattern, with the highest biomass values occurring in the Da Hinggan, Xiao Xing'an and Changbai mountains of the northeast, and the Hengduan mountains of the southwest. The relatively high values were widely distributed in mountain areas in Sichuan and Yunan provinces of the southwest, and Fujian province of the southeast.