Comment on essd-2023-3

Abstract

<strong class="journal-contentHeaderColor">Abstract.</strong> Non-floodplain wetlands &ndash; those located outside the floodplains &ndash; have emerged as integral components to watershed resilience, contributing hydrologic and biogeochemical functions affecting watershed-scale flooding extent, drought magnitude, and water-quality maintenance. However, the absence of a global dataset of non-floodplain wetlands limits their necessary incorporation into water quality and quantity management decisions and affects wetland-focused wildlife habitat conservation outcomes. We addressed this critical need by developing a publicly available Global NFW (non-floodplain wetland) dataset, comprised of a global river-floodplain map at 90 m resolution coupled with a global ensemble wetland map incorporating multiple wetland-focused data layers. The floodplain, wetland, and non-floodplain wetland spatial data developed here were successfully validated within 21 large and heterogenous basins across the conterminous United States. We identified nearly 33 million potential non-floodplain wetlands with an estimated global extent of over 16 million km². Non-floodplain wetland pixels comprised 53 % of globally identified wetland pixels, meaning the majority of the globe&rsquo;s wetlands likely occur external to river floodplains and coastal habitats. The identified Global NFWs were typically small (median 0.039 km²), with a global median size ranging from 0.018&ndash;0.138 km². This novel geospatial Global NFW dataset advances wetland conservation and resource-management goals while providing a foundation for global non-floodplain wetland functional assessments, facilitating non-floodplain wetland inclusion in hydrological, biogeochemical, and biological model development. The data are freely available through the United States Environmental Protection Agency&rsquo;s Environmental Dataset Gateway (<a href="https://gaftp.epa.gov/EPADataCommons/ORD/Global_NonFloodplain_Wetlands/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://gaftp.epa.gov/EPADataCommons/ORD/Global_NonFloodplain_Wetlands/</a>) and through <a href="https://doi.org/10.23719/1528331" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://doi.org/10.23719/1528331</a> (Lane et al., 2023).