Editing IPCC:AR6/SR15/Chapter-3 (section)

== 3.4.5.5 Wetlands ==

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Observations indicate that wetlands, such as saltmarshes and mangrove forests, are disrupted by changing conditions (Sections 3.4.4.8; Wong et al., 2014; Lovelock et al., 2015) <sup>[[#fn:r798|798]]</sup> , such as total water levels and sediment availability. For example, saltmarshes in Connecticut and New York, USA, measured from 1900 to 2012, have accreted with SLR but have lost marsh surface relative to tidal datums, leading to increased marsh flooding and further accretion (Hill and Anisfeld, 2015) <sup>[[#fn:r799|799]]</sup> . This change stimulated marsh carbon storage and aided climate change mitigation.

Salinization may lead to shifts in wetland communities and their ecosystem functions (Herbert et al., 2015) <sup>[[#fn:r800|800]]</sup> . Some projections of wetland change, with magnitudes (but not necessarily rates or timing) of SLR analogous to 1.5°C and 2°C of global warming, indicate a net loss of wetlands in the 21st century (e.g., Blankespoor et al., 2014; Cui et al., 2015; Arnell et al., 2016; Crosby et al., 2016) <sup>[[#fn:r801|801]]</sup> , whilst others report a net gain with wetland transgression (e.g. Raabe and Stumpf, 2016 <sup>[[#fn:r802|802]]</sup> in the Gulf of Mexico). However, the feedback between wetlands and sea level is complex, with parameters such as a lack of accommodation space restricting inland migration, or sediment supply and feedbacks between plant growth and geomorphology (Kirwan and Megonigal, 2013; Ellison, 2014; Martínez et al., 2014; Spencer et al., 2016) <sup>[[#fn:r803|803]]</sup> still being explored. Reducing global warming from 2°C to 1.5°C will deliver long-term benefits, with natural sedimentation rates more ''likely'' keep up with SLR. It remains unclear how wetlands will respond and under what conditions (including other climate parameters) to a global temperature rise of 1.5°C and 2°C. However, they have great potential to aid and benefit climate change mitigation and adaptation ( ''medium confidence'' ) (Sections 4.3.2.2 and 4.3.2.3).

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