Carbon Stock Evaluation and Potential Carbon Market Value Determination of Ashaavieen Nature Reserve, Msallata, Libya

Abstract

This study targets to assign the total carbon stock of Ashaavieen Nature Reserve, Msallata, Libya, as-sisting its potential carbon market value based on different global market sources. Northern and Southern sites were adopted representing the dominant tree species; (Pinus halepensis, Ziziphus lotus, and Ceratonia siliqua). The samples were conducted across the summer and winter of 2020 to get an annual average. These samples were classified into leaves, stems, bark (aboveground), and roots (be-lowground). The soil samples were collected at 0-10 cm, 10-20 cm, and 20-30 cm depth. Organic car-bon content was assessed based on the Loss on Ignition method (LOI). The results have shown that the bark has recorded the highest carbon content rate, followed by the stem, leaf, and root. Also, the carbon in soil samples has a direct relationship with depth in the order of (0-10 cm) > (10-20 cm) > (20-30 cm). Total carbon stock was 870.47 (t/ha/yr) and 1858.21 (t/ha/yr) in Northern and Southern sites. Total tree coverage of the study area was estimated at 91.26 hectares, while the potential carbon market value ranged from 0.72 t0 32.09 million USD.