Coarse land cover datasets bias Arctic-Boreal wetland methane budgets.

ABSTRACT: Accurate methane (CH₄) 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 CH₄ emissions across seven Arctic and boreal sites in North America and Eurasia. Resampling to coarser resolutions (up to 5 km) revealed that CH₄ 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 CH₄ source to sink, due

SUBMITTER: Hashemi J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12618245 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature