Abstract: Land use change (LUC) is the most dynamic force in terrestrial carbon stock change, and it is imperative to account for the dynamics of LUC in carbon stock change when forming land use policies. In the present study, the impacts of LUCs on carbon (C) stocks were explored at a county scale and the changes of soil C stocks were detected within a county-scale land use planning policy. The LUCs within 1979-2006 in Fuyang and Fuyang Land Use Master Planning (FLUMP) (2006-2020) were selected for this study. The estimates of C stock changes were examined by compiling vegetation and soil organic C density data from six land use types, and through literature reviews and field surveys. The results showed that LUCs between 1979 and 2006 already caused a vegetation carbon (VC) decrease of 273.4 Gg and a soil (0-20 cm layer) organic carbon (SOC) decrease of 771.0 Gg, mainly due to the urbanization processes. Furthermore, the FLUMP (2006-2020) was expected to cause a potential annual C decline of 25.93 kg·hm^-2 for VC and 27.48 kg·hm^-2 for SOC during 2006-2020. As the situation stands, it is urgent to devise rational policies and effective measures to reverse the C loss process.

Key words: carbon stock, vegetation carbon, carbon density, land use planning, urbanization, afforestation