Determinación de carbono orgánico en la biomasa y suelo del páramo de la Comunidad Pichán Central San Isidro

Abstract

Determination of Organic Carbon in the Biomass and Soil of the Páramo of the Community of Pichán Central - San Isidro, Cantón Guano, Chimborazo Province. Regarding the methodology, a representative random sampling was developed, for which it was necessary to use GIS for georeferencing, as well as to determine the points where the samples were taken, and finally to find the zones of influence. In the experimental phase, the extracted samples were pre-treated, i.e., washed, air-dried, ground and sieved, in order to obtain a homogeneous representative sample of each stratum, both of Biomass and Soil. At the laboratory level, for the determination of organic carbon in biomass and soil, the colorimetric technique was applied, always with the purpose of improving the precision of the values obtained, this colorimetric technique has the advantage of a lower consumption of reagents and of reducing the sources of error. Thus we have that in the investigation the Organic Carbon was determined in each of the altitudinal floors, and we have that there was an average of Straw with 26.99%, of Root Straw with 28.73%, of Pad with 43.10%, of Root Pad with 34.94%, that in terms of Biomass, while for Soil 1 (0-70cm depth) we have an average of 34.90% and finally for Soil 2 (70-120 cm depth) we have 27.43%. We conclude that the páramo, due to its environmental conditions, has a large amount of accumulated organic matter, and in addition to being a constant water supplier, it is a great CO2 capturer and accumulator of organic carbon. It is recommended to preserve the páramo making the community aware of the benefits and services provided by this ecosystem.