Is Ghana's Soil Breathing too much Carbon? Understanding Land-Use Emissions

Abstract

This study addresses this need by investigating SRR across forests, fallow lands, and croplands (maize and rice) in Ghana’s moist semi-deciduous forest zone. The findings aim to support Ghana’s Natural Resource Management and Agriculture and Food Security priorities by promoting sustainable land-use practices that reduce emissions and enhance carbon sequestration. Integrating these insights into EPA Ghana’s reporting framework can improve the accuracy of national inventories and strengthen Ghana’s climate mitigation strategies. This study examined soil respiration across four land-use types in Ghana's moist semi-deciduous forest zone: forest, fallow land, maize fields, and rice fields. Forest plots in the Bobiri Forest Reserve, managed since 1939, remain undisturbed, while fallow lands, left uncultivated for 7 – 15 years, were previously used for crops like maize and cassava. Maize fields have been cultivated for more than 15 years and rice fields, cultivated for over 20 years, rely on chemical fertilizers and pesticides. A total of 14 plots were selected for measuring soil respiration from these land-use types for 13 months using a closed chamber method. Soil samples from the same plots were analysed for physical and chemical properties such as soil moisture, bulk density and texture) and chemical properties (pH, organic carbon and nitrogen). These parameters were assessed to understand their influence on soil respiration rates.