Key messages
- A new global wetlands map, which uses a multisource approach (satellite, climatic and topographic data) and is underpinned by an expert system model with high spatial detail (232 x 232 m2), is now available. The map suggests that much more peat exists in the tropics than was previously reported.
- Unprecedented areas and volumes of peatlands, three times the size of previous estimates, are identified in the tropics, mainly outside Asia.
- Brazil emerges to be the main host of peat areas and volumes, closely followed by Indonesia.
- Tropical and sub-tropical peatland-hosting countries in all continents can use the map to direct, locate and prioritize conservation and management of wetlands and peatlands in the context of climate change mitigation and adaptation.
- Scientific engagement should be continued through intensive field campaigns to validate these new peat hotspots; the interactive map will facilitate this process.
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- Authors: Murdiyarso, D., Román-Cuesta, R.M., Verchot, L.V., Herold, M., Gumbricht, T., Herold, N., Martius, C.
- Author Affiliation: Center for International Forestry Research
- Subjects: peatlands, swamps
- Publication type: Brief
- Year: 2017
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor/006452
