Dehradun (The Hawk): Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) along with Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh State Forest Departments are implementing the World Bank funded Ecosystem Services Improvement Project. ICFRE has established two carbon flux towers in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh under Ecosystem Services Improvement Project. This project is supporting the goals of Green India Mission by demonstrating models for adaptation-based mitigation through sustainable land and ecosystem management. New tools and technologies for better management of natural resources, including biodiversity and carbon assets and the use of advanced monitoring systems are being introduced under this project, which have become wide use and are considered necessity in the forestry sector. ICFRE in collaboration with Indian Institute of Remote Sensing is organizing a training programme on Measurement of Forest Carbon Exchange through Eddy Covariance based Carbon Flux Towers from 31 October to 02 November 2022 at Dehradun for developing the capacity of officers and scientists of State Forest Departments of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and ICFRE's institutes under the Ecosystem Services Improvement Project. The Chief Guest of the inaugural session of the training programme Sh. Arun Singh Rawat, Director General, ICFRE delivered an inaugural address in the training and stated that capacity building of the officers and scientists from SFDs, research institutions and academic institutions, and more carbon flux towers need to be established in other major forest types of India are required for assessing the forest carbon dynamics in the changing climatic scenarios.
Dr. Rajesh Sharma, ADG Biodiversity and Climate Change, ICFRE highlighted the needs for capacity building of the forestry personnel about measurement of forest carbon exchange using eddy covariance-based carbon fluxes. Dr. Suresh Kumar, Group Head, IIRS highlighted the role of IIRS in measurement of forest carbon exchange and capacity building of the stakeholders.
Presentations on Ecosystem Services Improvement Project and importance of measurement and monitoring of forest carbon stocks, understanding forest carbon cycle using in-situ measurements, satellite data and modelling techniques, eddy covariance technique for measurement of forest carbon exchange basic principle, theory, methods and outcome; experimental design (site, eddy covariance applications, concept of flux footprint); software's used in processing flux data/ sample data of carbon flux; eddy covariance data processing using EasyFlux; data processing principles, procedures including correction measures, processing and analysis of flux data, eddy covariance instrumentation and its maintenance, application of models for extrapolation of forest carbon exchange at landscape level and exposure to Carbon Flux Tower established by IIRS at Barkot Forest Range, Dehradun are being delivered by the experts namely Dr. R.S. Rawat, Dr. Shilpa Gautam, Dr. HitendraPadaliya, Dr. T. Watham, Dr. S. Nandy and Sh. Anuj Sharma from ICFRE, IIRS and Campbell Scientific India Pvt Ltd. in this training programme. 29 officers and scientists from State Forest Departments of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and ICFRE institutes are participating in the training programme. Dr. Md. Shahid, Dr. N. Bora and Sh. Subhash Godiyal and others from ICFRE and IIRS were also present in the inaugural session of the training.
