Developing Capacities in Carbon Stock Measurement Across Ecologies and Land Use Systems in West Africa
Investigator(s)
Principal investigator:
Cheikh Mbow, Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar-Senegal, Dakar, Senegal
E-mail: cmbow(at)ucad.sn
Abstract
The recent emergence of international carbon markets, both regulated and unregulated, now offer entirely new opportunities for agricultural producers to generate income. Carbon is now an internationally traded commodity, just like major cash crops. These new markets create new challenges for the African science community if African nations and individual producers are to benefit. The long-term vision is one where both individual small-holder producers and entire communities are able to manage their forests and agroforesty production systems, and market not only the edible and commercial crops, but also the carbon sequestered by these systems. To realize this goal, the scientific capacity must exist in each country to advise national policy makers and carryout the necessary, internationally agreed upon protocols of measurement and monitoring. At the same time, there is also a need to elevate the current state-of-the-science through introducing the use of advanced technologies that can improve accuracy and reduce costs by replacing in situ measurements with an analysis of large areas by high resolution satellite imagery and carbon models. This project will make contributions in both areas: capacity-building, and testing new science applications.
URL
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