Equations / Aboveground biomass

Canadian national equation, trembling aspen, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3)

Aboveground biomassPopulus tremuloides · SalicaceaeCanadanaturalRead from the original paper

Equation

As printed (Eq. 2)

y wood = β wood1 D^βwood2 + ewood … y bark = β bark1 D^βbark2 + e bark … y foliage = β foliage1 D^βfoliage2 … y branches = β branches1 D^βbranches2

In this library's units, ready to compute (kg)

Aboveground biomass = 0.0605 * D^2.475 + 0.0168 * D^2.3949 + 0.008 * D^2.5214 + 0.0261 * D^1.6304

D: Diameter at breast height (1.3 m), cm

Total aboveground biomass = wood + bark + branches + foliage, each a power function of dbh (cm), kg dry mass; the total is the sum of the four compartment equations (additivity by construction). r2 is the adjusted R² of the total. The paper also gives dbh+height equations (Table 4). Ung et al. (2008) later revised parameters for some species with BC data; not used here.

Source

Lambert, M.-C., Ung, C.-H., Raulier, F. (2005). Canadian national tree aboveground biomass equations. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 35(8), 1996–2018.

doi:10.1139/x05-112 · Paywalled · copy we read

bwood1 0.0605 bwood2 2.475 bbark1 0.0168 bbark2 2.3949 bbranches1 0.008 bbranches2 2.5214 bfoliage1 0.0261 bfoliage2 1.6304

Equation · Table 3, Trembling aspen (rows transcribed)

Trembling aspen bwood1 0.0605 0.0029

Equation · Table 3

Trembling aspen 773

Trees measured · Table 2 (No. of trees; dbh range in parentheses)

Trembling aspen Total 0.0199 0.95 42.6

R² · Table 5, dbh-based set (σ̂ii, AdjRSq, RMSE in kg)

Trees measured: 773
DBH range: 0.7–47.2 cm
R²: 0.95
Method: Nonlinear seemingly unrelated regression with weight functions; additivity constrained so compartments sum to total
Where: Canada (ENFOR archival data, early 1980s)
Last checked: 2026-11-01

Calculate

DBH (cm)

141.1

Aboveground biomass (kg)

66.3

Carbon (kg), ×0.47

243.1

CO₂e (kg), ×44/12

Shaded: the DBH range the model was fitted on. Other inputs held at the values above.

Checks this equation passes

On every build, the library's form and the paper's own form (in its units) must both give these values within 1%.

Inputs	Expected	We get	From
D = 20	141.1	141.1	Computed from the printed form computed from the published form at dbh = 20 cm

Report a problem with this equation · JSON

Poplar aboveground biomass (compatible total-biomass system) · Du et al. 2026 · DBH + Height
European general equation, Populus, aboveground, diameter only (Eq. 3) · Forrester et al. 2017 · DBH
Quaking aspen total aboveground biomass from DBH and height (Table 4) · Poudel et al. 2019 · DBH + Height
Black cottonwood total aboveground biomass from DBH and height (Table 4) · Poudel et al. 2019 · DBH + Height
Canadian national equation, black spruce, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3) · same paper · Aboveground biomass
Canadian national equation, jack pine, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3) · same paper · Aboveground biomass
Canadian national equation, red oak, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3) · same paper · Aboveground biomass
Canadian national equation, sugar maple, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3) · same paper · Aboveground biomass

Compare these curves

Canadian national equation, trembling aspen, dbh only (sum of wood, bark, branches, foliage; Table 3)

Related