SUMMARY

Although tropical peatlands are said to be globally significant carbon sinks that store large amounts of carbon, the data on which this information is based are subject to uncertainty and error. It is estimated that over half of the tropical peatland area is located in Southeast Asia, but there are no up-to-date and accurate measures of the precise location and extent of this resource, especially because of rapid land-use change developments in recent years. When areal extent and thickness data are combined to derive estimates of carbon content and compute the magnitude of tropical peatland carbon pools, uncertainties are compounded. This paper reviews the current state of knowledge and degree of uncertainty on the extent of tropical peatlands globally and their carbon stocks. Recent interest in the carbon storage potential of tropical peatlands, the magnitude of emissions from them and their importance in climate change processes should lead to more detailed field and remote sensing surveys and accurate data inventories in order to improve the state of knowledge