ABSTRACT
Forests play a significant role in climate change mitigation by sequestering and storing more carbon from the atmosphere which is released by anthropogenic causes mainly through fossil fuel burning and deforestation. Ethiopia is one of tropical country which has significant forest resource but the studies on carbon stock variation along altitudinal gradient have not been well studied.
This study was done with the aim of estimating above and below ground carbon stock amount variation along altitudinal gradient in the Moist Afromontane of the belete natural forest The total forest area of Belete natural forest were stratified in to three forest strata(lower, middle and higher) using Digital elevation model with GIS. The data was collected through systematic stratified and grid random sampling. Each plot of 15mx20m was lied across transect line with a distance of 500m between plot and 2.5km between transect to collect data. Within each main plot a quadrant of 1mx1m with four at corners and one at center were used to collect litter sample data .The results shown that, there were forty two species with individual of 2053 trees and shrubs in the study sites which had DBH ≥5 cm. The total mean above ground and below ground carbon stock were 232.44 and 67.1 t ha-1 respectively. The deadwood biomass was only found in lower and middle altitude. The total mean carbon in dead wood and litter Were 0.66 and 0.18 t ha-1 respectively. The total mean carbon stock for all measured carbon pools were 300.38 ton ha-1 .The total mean Carbon stock variation along altitudinal gradient was 251.79, 294.52 and 358.25 t ha-1 for lower, middle and higher altitude respectively of which higher amount of carbon stored in higher altitude. The difference of carbon stock and biomass in lower ,middle and higher altitude were statistically insignificant except in dead wood carbon.
Key words: Forest strata , Climate change mitigation, Carbon stock, Altitude, Belete Natural Forest.
