Evaluación de la riqueza florística, eficiencia energética y carbono aéreo almacenado en sistemas agroforestales en la microcuenca del río Cutilcay

Abstract

The diversity of plant species, energy efficiency, and the estimation of carbon stored in the above-ground biomass are topics of interest within the ecological, environmental, and social fields. Agroforestry systems, due to their characteristics and by standing out as sustainable agricultural practices, make its evaluation important to understand their functionality within a community. This study aimed to evaluate floristic diversity through the alpha diversity indexes (Margalef, Shannon-Wiener, and Simpson Index), beta diversity (Jaccard index), energy efficiency, through an energy balance between the inputs and outputs of the agroforestry systems, and finally evaluate the estimation of carbon stored in the above-ground biomass, trough allometric equations. The research took into account a population of 75 agroforestry systems in the Cutilcay river micro-basin, Paute canton, southern Ecuador, which stands out for being an important agricultural center, where three altitudinal floors were established (low micro basin, medium, and high) to generate communities of comparison. The methodology was based on the establishment of plots (1000 m2) in each agroforestry system throughout the micro-basin. In each SAF, the woody plant species were identified, dasometric data (height and DBH) were collected, and structured surveys were applied to the owners of each farm. Regarding the results, the area, in general, showed a low diversity of species where the species Prunus persica and Malus domestica were the most abundant, for energy efficiency an average of 1.39 was obtained, and in terms of the estimation of carbon stored in the above-ground biomass an average of 8.02 t C/ha, where Persea americana and Prunus Persica were the species that contributed the most to the total carbon stored in aerial biomass.