Information on peat stocks in the world as a whole is presented. The spatial and temporal changes in peat reserves in Ukraine are analyzed. The quantitative characterization of the distribution of peat deposits and peat reserves by types will be considered over a long period of research time. In the use of agriculture there are 7722 km2 of peat deposits, 2806 km2 of which are represented by depleted agricultural land, while the rest of the area is occupied by unproductive hayflowers, pastures, swamps and shrubs. In the use of forestry enterprises there are 1536 km2 of peat deposits, most of which are also drained. At present, the main reserves of peat are in the following oblasts: Volyn (21%), Rivne (18%), Chernihiv (12%), Kyiv (11%), Lviv (6%), Khmelnytsky (6%), Sumy (5%), Zhytomyr (4%), other regions — 4%. The number of fields, their areas are gradually decreasing, for each decade they decrease by 3–20%, depending on the rate of use and other factors. Rapid pace of transformation of drained peatlands, specificity of soil formation, peculiar microclimate, greenhouse effect of swamps, radioactive contamination, high adsorption capacity for pollutants, coagulation of soil colloids, wind and hydrothermal erosion, degradation and formation of badlands, re-waterlogging, cascade of piles on drained lands, untimely reclamation, pyrogenic threat, illegal extraction of minerals, natural radioactivity and radon emissions, methane emissions, greenhouse gas deposition, creation and peat meadows, forests, hunting areas, protection of wetlands and peatlands — is one of the main issues to be addressed by introducing a set of measures based on science-based concepts. The peatlands, besides the unique phyto-, zoo-, and landscape manifolds, carry out serious soil protection, hydroforming functions, provide greenhouse gas absorption, are peat deposits as conditionally regenerating organogenic fuels, fertilizers and chemical raw materials; these are important reserves of berries, medicinal herbs, peat deposits of valuable value. for paleoecological research. The necessity of development of drained peatlands of Ukraine for effective agricultural management as an indicator of environmental changes is determined. Depleted and spent peatlands require rehabilitation and reclamation. The main questions to be solved by introducing the complex of the most urgent measures on the basis of a scientifically grounded concept — the creation of cascades of reservoirs from fish breeding, cultivating bioenergetic crops (willow, miscanthus, etc.), laying berries (high boletus, cranberries of largeleafed), etc. are given.