In this case, the estimate is 46 t C ha -1 . The largest uncertainty is the area that will benefit from such practices. A 10-year period is recommended to assess the impact on soil carbon stocks. The level of carbon stock change can be readily verified through land-based techniques described above. Assumptions and methodologies associated with this practice can be explained clearly to facilitate replication and assessment.
Scientific methods are open to review and replicable over time.
Stopping the activity would lead to an estimated loss of soil carbon of 50 percent in about 5 years. Methane emitted by 1 ha of paddy rice can be absorbed by 24 ha of agroforests if the patches are close enough in a landscape mosaic. This biodiversity is possible because such agroforests, which are composed of hundreds of small plots that are managed by individual families, occupy contiguous areas of several thousand hectares in Sumatra. In view of human migrations to the forest margins, the optimal tradeoffs between carbon capture and economic and social benefits are an important policy determination. Examples of such tradeoffs are described by Gokowski et al.