Carbon storage in Jatropha curcas trees in Northern Tanzania

This study investigates the carbon sequestration capacity of Jatropha curcas, a tropical tree-like shrub that is widely cultivated for the production of oilseeds for biodiesel and biokerosene. It applies a destructive research approach on fifteen Jatropha trees of different ages growing in the field in semi-arid tropical conditions in Northern Tanzania. It estimates allometric equations for the relationship between basal stem diameter and above-ground dry biomass, and total dry biomass, respectively. It also measures the carbon content in a range of dry wood samples with a carbon analyzer. The results can be useful for estimating carbon sequestration capacity of Jatropha curcas biofuel projects in semi-arid conditions for the purpose of obtaining carbon finance, and for assessing the contribution of carbon sequestration in Jatropha biomass in the context of biofuel life-cycle analyses.