## [Practical Guide to Measuring Wetland Carbon Pools and Fluxes ](/resource/practical-guide-measuring-wetland-carbon-pools-and-fluxes) Organization [Society of Wetland Scientists](/portal/wetland-knowledge/organization/society-wetland-scientists) Resource Type [Peer reviewed article](/taxonomy/term/37) Author(s) Sheel Bansal Irena Creed Brian Tangen Scott Bridgham Ankur Desai Ken Krauss Scott Neubauer Gregory Noe Donald Rosenberry Carl Trettin Kimberly Wickland Scott Allen Ariane Arias-Ortiz Anna Armitage Dennis Baldocchi Kakoli Banerjee David Bastviken Peter Berg Matthew Bogard Alex Chow William Conner Christopher Craft Courtney Creamer Tonya DelSontro Jamie Duberstein Meagan Eagle Siobhan Fennessy Sarah Finkelstein Mathias Göckede Sabine Grunwald Meghan Halabisky Ellen Herbert Mohammad Jahangir Olivia Johnson Miriam Jones Jefrey Kelleway Sara Knox Kevin Kroeger Kevin Kuehn David Lobb Amanda Loder Shizhou Ma Damien Maher Gavin McNicol Jacob Meier Beth Middleton Christopher Mills Purbasha Mistry Abhijit Mitra Courtney Mobilian Charles Schutte Changchun Song Camille Stagg Jessica Turner Rodrigo Vargas Mark Waldrop Marcus Wallin Zhaohui Aleck Wang Eric Ward Debra Willard Stephanie Yarwood Xiaoyan Zhu Original Authors Sheel Bansal Irena Creed Brian Tangen Scott Bridgham Ankur Desai Ken Krauss Scott Neubauer Gregory Noe Donald Rosenberry Carl Trettin Kimberly Wickland Scott Allen Ariane Arias‑Ortiz Anna Armitage Dennis Baldocchi Kakoli Banerjee David Bastviken Peter Berg Matthew Bogard Alex Chow William Conner Christopher Craft Courtney Creamer Tonya DelSontro Jamie Duberstein Meagan Eagle Siobhan Fennessy Sarah Finkelstein Mathias Göckede Sabine Grunwald Meghan Halabisky Ellen Herbert Mohammad Jahangir Olivia Johnson Miriam Jones Jefrey Kelleway Sara Knox Kevin Kroeger Kevin Kuehn David Lobb Amanda Loder Shizhou Ma Damien Maher Gavin McNicol Jacob Meier Beth Middleton Christopher Mills Purbasha Mistry Abhijit Mitra Courtney Mobilian Charles Schutte Changchun Song Camille Stagg Jessica Turner Rodrigo Vargas Mark Waldrop Marcus Wallin Zhaohui Aleck Wang Eric Ward Debra Willard Stephanie Yarwood Xiaoyan Zhu Contacts [Sheel Bansal](/contact/sheel-bansal) Resource Date: 2023 Wetlands cover a small portion of the world, but have disproportionate influence on global carbon (C) sequestration, carbon dioxide and methane emissions, and aquatic C fluxes. However, the underlying biogeochemical processes that affect wetland C pools and fluxes are complex and dynamic, making measurements of wetland C challenging. Over decades of research, many observational, experimental, and analytical approaches have been developed to understand and quantify pools and fluxes of wetland C. Sampling approaches range in their representation of wetland C from short to long timeframes and local to landscape spatial scales. This review summarizes common and cutting-edge methodological approaches for quantifying wetland C pools and fluxes. We first *define* each of the major C pools and fluxes and provide *rationale* for their importance to wetland C dynamics. For each approach, we clarify *what* component of wetland C is measured and its spatial and temporal representativeness and constraints. We describe practical considerations for each approach, such as *where* and *when* an approach is typically used, *who* can conduct the measurements (expertise, training requirements), and *how* approaches are conducted, including considerations on equipment complexity and costs. Finally, we review *key covariates* and *ancillary measurements* that enhance the interpretation of findings and facilitate model development. The protocols that we describe to measure soil, water, vegetation, and gases are also relevant for related disciplines such as ecology. Improved quality and consistency of data collection and reporting across studies will help reduce global uncertainties and develop management strategies to use wetlands as nature-based climate solutions.