Carbon Emission Of Land Use In Korean Peninsula

Carbon sources and sinks of terrestrial ecosystems occur on land surface.Land use changes driven by anthropogenic and natural factors have directly affected changes in carbon budget of terrestrial ecosystems.This study based on Landsat TM/OLI data obtained land use information of Korean Peninsula for years of 1990,2000,and 2015 using an object-based image analysis(OBIA)approach.The OBIA is suggested to be better than pixel-based classification method via comparison with other 30-meter resolution land cover datasets.Moreover,this study discussed drivers of land use change of two countries during two periods considered.This study used NDVI,SoilGrids,and FAO's crop yield data to estimate carbon intensity(CI)of various land use types of North Korea and South Korea during each period.Combining CI with land use changes,carbon emissions from land use management and change(CE-LUMC)were calculated.DMSP/OLS data is used to calculate carbon emissions from energy consumptions of built-up land(CE-ECBL).Potential drivers of CE-LUMC and CE-ECBL as well as targeted suggestions for reducing emissions were further discussed to North Korea and South Korea.Five key-points were briefly clarified respectively in next paragraphs.(1)Land use maps produced by OBIA meets research needs in terms of accuracy.From Google Earth,610,596,and 633 verification points were randomly selected for 1990,2000.and 2015 images.Assessment results show that overall accuracy is over 95%and kappa coefficient is over 0.95 in all land use maps.Comparing land use map of this study with spatial details of FROM-GLC and Globeland30 shows that OBIA is more suitable for Korean Peninsula as 'salt and salt' effects were eliminated.(2)Vicious circle of deforestation in North Korea leads to environmental degradation and economic losses.Between 1990-2000 and 2000-2015,forest land decreased by 260,700 ha and 366,900 ha respectively,and the cropland expanded by 123,700 hectares and 369,200 hectares respectively.Forest land was mainly converted into cropland,which reached 125,900 ha and 510,400 ha in two periods.In North Korea,economic deterioration in the 1990s made energy shortages and food supplies difficult.Therefore,dwellers deforested to obtain energy and farming,which leads to serious soil erosion and flood disasters,resulting in economic losses.Interactions of these factors forms a vicious circle of 'economic deterioration? inappropriate land uses? environmental deterioration?economic deterioration'(3)In South Korea,built-up land continues to expand while management and use of forest resources enter a phase of Sustainable Forest Management(SFM).Between 1990-2000 and 2000-2015,built-up land expanded by 74,300 ha and 149,700 ha respectively,while forest land and cropland continued to decrease.Economic growth,urbanization of the population,and industrialization have promoted expansion of built-up land during 25 years.Although forest land has decreased,its land coverage has remained at some 64%,indicating that management and use of forest has entered a phase of Sustainable Forest Management(SFM)(4)Both CE-LUMC and CE-ECBL in North Korea and South Korea have shown growth during 1990-2015.CE-LUMC of North Korea and South Korea increased by 30.64%and 36.46%respectively.Fraction of carbon emissions from land use change in North Korea increased from 5.72%in 1990-2000 to 12.97%in 2000-2015,while that in South Korea decreased from 6.89%to 0.61%.Deforestation and cropland expansion are main factors for carbon emissions in North Korea,and decline in forest stocks leads to low carbon sequestration of forest land.However,South Korea's forest carbon sequestration capacity continues to grow,benefiting from large-scale afforestation programs that began in the 1970s.In terms of CE-ECBL,North Korea's carbon emissions are similar to GDP's trajectory,which is first to decrease and then increase.However,increased emissions per unit of GDP indicates that economic growth consumes more energy.In contrast,South Korea's energy emissions are concentrated in metropolitan areas.At the same time as emissions growth slows down,industrial structure upgrades make economic development less dependent on energy-consuming industries.(5)North Korea should strengthen preservation of forest resources while South Korea should reduce emissions of energy consumption.North Korea needs more afforestation,protection of forests,and to raise public awareness of forest protection to increase forest land's carbon sequestration.In this regard,this study recommended North Korea plant more species of trees to increase species diversities of forest communities to enhance carbon sink.Moreover,while realizing economic development,North Korea should focus on industrial restructuring,development of service industry and construction industry,etc.,which can reduce carbon emissions while economic development.In South Korea,upgrading of industrial structure has contributed to energy conservation and emission reduction.Yet these are not enough to achieve government's emission reduction targets,so South Korea should more focus on reducing energy emissions,such as more use of clean energy.