Long-term Carbon Loss and Recovery Following Selective Logging in Amazon Forests

Amazon deforestation contributes significantly to global carbon (C) emissions. In comparison, the contribution from selective logging to atmospheric CO2 emissions, and its impact on regional C dynamics, is highly uncertain. Using a new geographically-based modeling approach in combination with high resolution remote sensing data from 1999-2002, we estimate C losses due to selective logging in a ~2,664,960 sq. km region of the Brazilian Amazon were 0.04 - 0.05 Pg C/yr . In sum, selective logging was responsible for 15-19% higher carbon losses than reported from deforestation (clear-cutting) alone. Our simulations indicated that forest carbon losses via selective logging last two to three decades following harvest, and that the original living biomass takes up to a century to recover, if the forests are not subsequently cleared. High-intensity harvests, which are widespread over the basin, are the major contributors to carbon losses following logging, in addition to obvious impacts on the ecological function of the forests. While avoided deforestation is central to crediting rainforest nations for reduced carbon emissions, the extent and intensity of selective logging are also critical to determining carbon losses in the context of Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD).