Stump height: a potential escalator of wood volume and carbon removals in miombo woodlands of mainland Tanzania

Mitigation and adaptation to climate change in developing countries require sustainable forest management through either retaining the forest unharvested, i.e., conservation or an increased need for proper tree harvesting. However, significant number of trees harvested in miombo woodland of mainland Tanzania are not cut at the specified stump height, i.e., 15 cm from the ground. Leaving extra stump height (ESH) would escalate wood volume removals and hence carbon emissions. Better insights on the extent of wood volume and carbon emissions of ESH in miombo woodlands are apparently needed. This study intended to estimate volume and carbon of ESH in miombo woodland of mainland Tanzania. Based on a sample of 5 264 stumps collected in miombo woodlands of Mainland Tanzania, total annual volume and annual carbon per hectare of ESH were estimated by using equation applicable to cylinder in R software. Result revealed that total annual volume, annual volume and carbon per hectare lost through ESH were 3 800 000 m−3 year−1, 0.098 ± 0.034m3ha−1 year−1 and 0.028 ± 0.009 tCha−1 year−1, respectively. The volume and carbon loss from ESH per hectare per year escalate 6% and 5% of more volume and carbon removals, respectively, in the entire miombo woodlands and its categories in mainland Tanzania. Since annual volume loss of ESH is almost ¼ of annual volume deficit of 19.5 million m3year−1, the deficit and further removals could be lowered through adhering to appropriate harvesting regulations.