Church Forests Diversity and Biomass Carbon Stock Along Urbanization Continuum in Dangila District, Awi-Zone, Ethiopia

Abstract Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Churches plays a significant role for native species conservation, carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation. The study was conducted to determine woody species diversity and biomass carbon stock of church forests along urbanization continuum in Dangila Woreda, Awi-zone, Ethiopia. After a preliminary survey, the churches were grouped into urban, peri-urban and rural continuums. Then one church was purposively selected from each urbanization continuum based on age gradient for making up a total of nine sample churches. Tree height and DBH data was recorded from a 2m width systematically laid down Gentry transect lines; whereas, seedlings was counted from three plots of 2m×2m size at each transect line. The similarities along urbanization were computed using Sorenson’s similarity index. Further ANOVA were used to test differences among the continuum. Finally, a total of 91 woody species were identified in the church forest. The mean Shannon diversity in urban, peri-urban and rural church forests was 2.38, 2.67 and 2.90 respectively. The general pattern of woody species community structure along urbanization continuum shows an inverted J-shape. The biomass carbon stock along urban, peri-urban and rural continuum was 24.96, 77.38and 46.13 metric tons respectively. Therefore, church forests are playing an indispensable role for woody species conservation, carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation at each urbanization continuum.