Carbon stock in forest restoration intercropped with Eucalyptus in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate above and below ground carbon stocks in three different forest restoration methods with native species, Eucalyptus and an area of semi-deciduous seasonal forest (as control) in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. The restoration methods evaluated were active restoration without Eucalyptus (RAS), active restoration with Eucalyptus (RAE) and passive restoration (RPE) and compared to a secondary forest fragment (REF). The evaluation reservoirs were: trees, roots, herbaceous, litter and soil (layers of 0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm). The estimates show that the total carbon stock was higher in REF (64.68 Mg C ha⁻¹), followed by RAE (62.06 Mg C ha⁻¹), RPE (50.23 Mg C ha⁻¹) and RAS (33.84 Mg C ha⁻¹). The results show that a forest restoration with a greater diversity of native forest species does not imply having a greater carbon stock in the different compartments. The soil was the compartment with the largest carbon stock. The use of Eucalyptus plantations in forest restoration of native forest species can contribute to increase the capture and the storage of carbon in the different reservoirs of the ecosystem.