The YPS (Yangambi Pôle Scientifique) project aims to promote the participatory management of the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve for the benefit of the local populations and the national and international scientific community. Its objective is to unleash the potential of Yangambi to become a scientific hub for the study of forest carbon storage, biodiversity, and climate change – all while supporting the creation of new livelihood opportunities and promoting the preservation of natural resources.
This initiative, coordinated jointly by CIFOR, the University of Ghent (UGent) and ERAIFT, is funded by the Belgian government through a delegated cooperation with the European Union.
CongoFlux Tower
Within the YPS project, the University of Ghent foresees the installation an eddy covariance flux tower. Reaching a height above the canopy, this structure will deliver continuous and accurate data on greenhouse gas exchanges (CO2, N2O, CH4 and H2O) between the atmosphere and the forest. Situated in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve, this tower will be the first of its kind in the Congo Basin, and will hence fill a huge data gap.
The data produced, which will be open and free for the scientific community, will be used to better understand the role that forests play sequestrating carbon and mitigating climate change, as well as to monitor the impact of the REDD+ process in the Congo Basin countries.
The tower is currently under construction and will be operational by 2020. For more information, please visit the CongoFlux website.