Estimating Mangrove Biomass and Carbon Stocks for Climate Change Mitigation in Sorong City, Southwest Papua of Indonesia

Abstract

Mangrove ecosystems play a crucial role in mitigating carbon emissions through their exceptional capacity to sequester and store large amounts of carbon, both in biomass and soil layers. This study aims to estimate the biomass and carbon stocks of mangrove ecosystems in Sorong City, Southwest Papua—an understudied region with significant coastal ecosystem potential. An allometric approach was applied to calculate Above Ground Biomass (AGB) and Below Ground Biomass (BGB), while laboratory analyses were conducted to determine Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) content. The results revealed a total carbon stocks of 10,925.05 Mg C/ha, with SOC contributing the most (>95%), followed by BGB and AGB. These findings highlight the critical importance of comprehensive mangrove ecosystem management as part of climate change mitigation strategies rooted in blue carbon, and underscore its relevance in strengthening national carbon spatial data in eastern Indonesia.