A new paper published in Science has used high-resolution mapping of losses and gains of Earth’s tidal wetlands. The abstract from the paper states that:

Ecologically and economically important coastal wetlands are threatened by sea level rise and land use change. Murray et al. used high-resolution satellite imagery to assess the global extent of tidal wetlands and changes in wetland extent and distribution over the past two decades.

They found that although over 13,000 square kilometers of tidal wetland have recently been lost, much of this decreasing extent has been offset by the creation of new wetlands. The greatest losses and gains were in tidal flats, but mangrove ecosystems showed the largest net decline in area globally.

Direct human impacts on wetlands, including land transformation and restoration, are detectable from satellite imagery and account for 27% of wetland losses and gains.

The full paper can be read here.