ИСТИНА

The Government of the Russian Federation (Resolution No. 1228 dated 21.09.2019) has ratified the Paris Agreement, stating, among other things, that the Russian Federation takes into account the importance of preserving and increasing the absorption capacity of forests, as well as the need for its maximum possible accounting. In order to fulfill its obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions identified in its nationally determined contribution (NDC), Russia takes action to improve the methodology and information base for assessing forest carbon sink in addition to reduce the industrial emissions and direct the economy towards low-carbon development. The carbon sequestration potential of Russian forests greatly underestimated nowadays. The prospects of applying the updated methodology for assessing the carbon sequestration of Russian forests and the results of experimental studies are discussed. The calculations made by us within the framework of the IBFRA Insight Process: Sustainable boreal forest management–challenges and opportunities for climate change mitigation show that the annual net carbon sink in boreal forest biomass was 467.5 Mt C yr-1 for the last 15 years. Significant differences in biomass carbon absorption and net carbon sink were identified between the European-Ural and the Asian parts of Russia. The average annual carbon absorption by forests of the Asian part was almost twice less than that in the European-Ural part, 0.7 t C/ha yr-1 and 1.36 t C/ha yr-1 respectively. The biomass carbon losses caused by timber harvesting, forest fires, pests and others per unit area were comparable in both regions. The average value of net carbon sink for forests in the Asian part estimated at 0.53 t C/ha yr-1, and for forests in the European-Ural part - 0.9 t C/ha yr-1.