Estimation of Tree Height, Biomass, and Standing Carbon in Miombo Woodlands Using Radar Interferometry

Savannas and woodlands are a major component of the world's vegetation covering one-sixth of the global land surface and one-half of the African continent. They account for about 30% of the primary production of all terrestrial vegetation. The southern African savannas cover 54% of the sub-continent with a plant diversity of approximately 8500 species and approximately 50% endemism. Miombo covers about two thirds of Mozambique and estimations of its biomass are critical because ecosystem services provided include food, fiber, and fuel for 39 million rural peoples and another 15 million urban dwellers in southern Africa. The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) C-band derived digital terrain model (DTM) can be used to estimate tree height by subtracting a base-level digital elevation model (DEM) from the calibrated SRTM. SRTM C-band's wavelength is such that there is partial penetration of the tree canopy before scattering which results in an underestimate of tree height. Consequently, mean tree height data from 50 30-m x 30-m random-stratified field plots in Niassa Reserve were used to bias the SRTM data up to average tree height and thus calibrate. However, DEMs in developing countries, particularly Africa, are not usually present and have to be developed either from field survey, orthophotography, or topographic maps. We derived a bare-ground binary mask from a land cover map of Niassa Reserve in northern Mozambique. The land cover map was generated from a Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM+) scene and the binary mask was overlaid against the SRTM to derive ground elevations from the SRTM. The resulting point map of elevations was spatially interpolated using thin plate spines with tension to derive a base-level DEM. The DEM was then subtracted from the calibrated SRTM to get tree heights. Secondly we explored the derivation of an independent base elevation DEM using the last return of the NASA Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) and compared this to the bare-ground mask approach. Tree heights in conjunction with plant allometric equations were then converted to estimates of biomass and standing carbon in Miombo woodlands. Future studies will focus on the demographic relationship between tree age and height using tree ring data to facilitate backward and foreword reconstructions of vegetation history.