What do we know about forests?
Forest is a large land covered with trees.
Those trees use photosynthesis to convert carbon dioxide and water to glucose and oxygen.
Why forests matter?
During photosynthesis process, forests continue cooling the atmosphere by inhaling CO2 and staring or sequestering it in roots, trunks, branches, and leaves. This activity of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide is also known as Carbon sequestration. For this reason, large terrestrial ecosystem such as forest can also function as carbon sink.
Trees with under-story gain the most value under Biomass Density Index (BDI). According to STES v2, Biomass Density Index is a measure of the optimization of vegetation biomass appropriate to the regional climate.
More sustainable credits:
[SITES]. Soil+ Vegetation 4.8: Optimize biomass
Conserve and/or restore vegetation biomass on site to level appropriate to the site’s region. Calculate existing BDI for the site as it stands prior to site design. Planned BDI is calculated for the site as designed and anticipated within 10 years of vegetation installation.
[LEED ND]. Innovation
Once your project qualifies for the SITES credit above, your project will also be eligible for Innovation credit in LEED ND. That helps the project to achieve significant measurable environmental performance using a strategy not addressed in the LEED green building rating system.
By the way…
For information to help determine a site’s terrestrial biome, check out archived Wildfinder Database.
Curious for more scientific literature about forest carbon? Check out “Stand density index tool to assess the maximization of forest carbon and biomass” from USDA’s publication.
Background music: Telemann/ Voila Concerto in G Major
Last update: 7.8.2021