Coarse land cover datasets bias Arctic-Boreal wetland methane budgets

Accurate methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emission estimates from Arctic and boreal wetlands are essential for reducing global budget uncertainties but are hindered by poorly constrained wetland distribution and classification. We assessed how land cover map resolution and thematic detail influence these estimates. Using very high spatial resolution land cover maps (≤2.5 m) with five to seven harmonized classes and 4-50% wetland coverage, we estimated CH<sub>4</sub> emissions across seven Arctic and boreal sites in North America and Eurasia. Resampling to coarser resolutions (up to 5 km) revealed that CH<sub>4</sub> flux estimates remained within 13% error when resolution was ≤25 m pixel size. At resolutions coarser than 1 km, four of seven sites shifted from net CH<sub>4</sub> source to sink, due to misrepresentation of wetland extent in heterogeneous landscapes with small, fragmented wetlands. Thematic detail also proved critical, as fens-high CH<sub>4</sub> emitters-were disproportionately underrepresented in coarse (>1 km) maps relative to other wetland types. We also show that existing global or circumpolar land cover maps tend to misrepresent wetlands, either overlooking smaller features or overestimating coverage in wetland dominated areas. Our findings indicate that coarse-scale land cover datasets are unsuitable for estimating CH<sub>4</sub> budgets in these regions, where high spatial resolution and biogeochemically relevant land cover classes are essential for reliable CH<sub>4</sub> emission upscaling.

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Publication Details

Journal
Communications Earth & Environment
Published
2025-11-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02963-1
Primary Topic
Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Coarse land cover datasets bias Arctic-Boreal wetland methane budgets

Aleksi Räsänen, Josh Hashemi, Mika Korkiakoski, David Olefeldt et al.
Communications Earth & Environment
Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
article

Coarse land cover datasets bias Arctic-Boreal wetland methane budgets

Aleksi Räsänen, Josh Hashemi, Mika Korkiakoski, David Olefeldt, Sari Juutinen, Carolina Voigt, Pekka Niittynen, Mika Aurela, Mark J. Lara, Claire C. Treat, Guido Grosse, Scott J. Davidson, McKenzie A. Kuhn, Anna‐Maria Virkkala, Tarmo Virtanen, Annett Bartsch, Miska Luoto, L. Chasmer, Oliver Sonnentag
article en

Abstract

Accurate methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) emission estimates from Arctic and boreal wetlands are essential for reducing global budget uncertainties but are hindered by poorly constrained wetland distribution and classification. We assessed how land cover map resolution and thematic detail influence these estimates. Using very high spatial resolution land cover maps (≤2.5 m) with five to seven harmonized classes and 4-50% wetland coverage, we estimated CH<sub>4</sub> emissions across seven Arctic and boreal sites in North America and Eurasia. Resampling to coarser resolutions (up to 5 km) revealed that CH<sub>4</sub> flux estimates remained within 13% error when resolution was ≤25 m pixel size. At resolutions coarser than 1 km, four of seven sites shifted from net CH<sub>4</sub> source to sink, due to misrepresentation of wetland extent in heterogeneous landscapes with small, fragmented wetlands. Thematic detail also proved critical, as fens-high CH<sub>4</sub> emitters-were disproportionately underrepresented in coarse (>1 km) maps relative to other wetland types. We also show that existing global or circumpolar land cover maps tend to misrepresent wetlands, either overlooking smaller features or overestimating coverage in wetland dominated areas. Our findings indicate that coarse-scale land cover datasets are unsuitable for estimating CH<sub>4</sub> budgets in these regions, where high spatial resolution and biogeochemically relevant land cover classes are essential for reliable CH<sub>4</sub> emission upscaling.

Communications Earth & EnvironmentVol. 6(1)
University of Lethbridge (CA), Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung (DE), Finnish Meteorological Institute (FI), Woodwell Climate Research Center (US), University of Helsinki (FI), University of British Columbia (CA), University of Alberta (CA), Université du Québec à Montréal (CA), Universität Hamburg (DE), University of Potsdam (DE), Aarhus University (DK), Carnegie Department of Plant Biology (US), Landesklinikum Korneuburg (AT), Université de Montréal (CA), University of Plymouth (GB), University of Jyväskylä (FI), University of Oulu (FI)
National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NOAA Center for Earth System Sciences and Remote Sensing Technologies, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Polar Programs
Openalex Percentile: Top 67%
Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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