Title: Peat-DBase v.1: A Compiled Database of Global Peat Depth Measurements
Citation: Skye, J., Melton, J., Goldblatt, C., Saumier, L., Gallego Sala, A., Garneau, M., Winton, S. R., Bahati, E. B., Benavides, J. C., Fedorchuk, L., Imani, G., Kagaba Kairumba, C., Kansiime, F., Lamentowicz, M., Mbasi, M., Wochal, D., Czerwiński, S., Landowski, J., Landowska, J., … Wang, Y. (2025). Peat-DBase v.1: A Compiled Database of Global Peat Depth Measurements (Version 1.0.0c) [Dataset]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17991992
Study Site: Canada
Purpose: Peatlands are globally important carbon stores that face increasing threats from human activities and climate change impacts. Comprehensive peatland data are essential for understanding ecosystem responses to these stressors and mapping their past and current characteristics. Current peatland datasets remain limited due to poor representation in global soil mapping initiatives and the absence of a recognized, coordinated central repository for peat depth data. Existing compilations often contain errors, duplicates, and outdated observations, requiring researchers to repeatedly gather and harmonize data on a study-by-study basis. To address these challenges, we present Peat-DBase version 1.0—a harmonized, quality-controlled global compilation of basal peat depth measurements.
Abstract: Version 1.0 of Peat-DBase comprises 204 902 peat depth measurements from 29 sources spanning 54.933°S to 82.217°N, with a significant proportion of measurements in Atlantic Canada and Scotland due to the inclusion of two particularly large datasets focused on those regions. We supplement the peat study measurements with 94 615 non-peat soil measurements to ensure comprehensive coverage consistent with the relatively low spatial coverage of peatlands globally. Despite the uneven distribution of peat depth measurements, Peat-DBase contains reasonable coverage of the major global peatland complexes in temperate and boreal North America and Europe, portions of Russia, the Amazon and Congo basins, and the Malay Archipelago, though gaps remain in the lower Amazon Basin, Eastern Indonesia, and Eastern Russia. From the current data, peat depths have a median value of 130 cm (IQR: 60 - 240), although this is influenced by a predominance of measurements in the North Atlantic regions. Peat-DBase’s deepest measurement is 2 223 cm.
While sampling biases and measurement uncertainties exist, Peat-DBase provides an essential foundation for global peatland research. Peat-DBase is under active development and future versions will incorporate additional datasets, information on current peatland status, and improved positional uncertainty quantification. Peat-DBase eliminates the need for overlapping data compilation efforts while identifying critical observational gaps for future research.
Supplemental Information Summary:
Responsible Parties:
Principal Investigator: Jade Skye
Collaborator: Joe Melton
Collaborator: Colin Goldblatt
Collaborator: Louis Saumier
Collaborator: Angela Gallego Sala
Collaborator: Michelle Garneau
Collaborator: Scott R Winton
Collaborator: Erick B Bahati
Collaborator: Juan C Benavides
Collaborator: Lee Fedorchuk
Collaborator: Gérard Imani
Collaborator: Carol Kagaba Kairumba
Collaborator: Frank Kansiime
Collaborator: Mariusz Lamentowicz
Collaborator: Michel Mbasi
Collaborator: Daria Wochal
Collaborator: Sambor Czerwiński
Collaborator: Jacek Landowski
Collaborator: Joanna Landowska
Collaborator: Vincent Maire
Collaborator: Minna M Väliranta
Collaborator: Matthew Warren
Collaborator: Lydia ES Cole
Collaborator: Marissa A Davies
Collaborator: Erik Andrew Lilleskov
Collaborator: Jingjing Sun
Collaborator: Yuwan Wang
Research:
Further Info: Skye, J., Melton, J. R., Goldblatt, C., Saumier, L., Gallego-Sala, A., Garneau, M., Winton, R. S., Bahati, E. B., Benavides, J. C., Fedorchuk, L., Imani, G., Kagaba Kairumba, C., Kansiime, F., Lamentowicz, M., Mbasi, M., Wochal, D., Czerwiński, S., Landowski, J., Landowska, J., Maire, V., Väliranta, M. M., Warren, M., Cole, L. E. S., Davies, M. A., Lilleskov, E. A., Sun, J., and Wang, Y.: Peat-DBase v.1: a compiled database of global peat depth measurements, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 17, 7313–7330, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-7313-2025, 2025
Status: Complete
Keywords:
peat properties,
Geographical coordinates: North: 83.15, South: 41.909 East: -52.619 West: -141.010
Bounding Temporal Extent: Start Date: , End
Date:
