Below Ground Carbon Storage Raster Maps for England at 25m Resolution

England's spatial prioritisation of below ground carbon storage in soils, presented as 25m² resolution raster datasets for GIS. The data indicates carbon storage values in tonnes per hectare, derived from Soilscapes and the Natural England Peat Map, with modifications based on habitat and ecological condition. Natural England compiled this strategic resource, with a report referenced from 2021 and a last platform update in 2026.

Use Cases

• Prioritising land for conservation based on soil carbon storage values mentioned in the description.
• Assessing regional carbon sink potential based on soil type and peatland condition described.
• Informing local climate action plans using the 25m resolution raster maps for spatial analysis.
• Estimating habitat-specific carbon stocks using the methodology involving PHI and Ancient Woodland modifiers.

Strengths

• Provides spatial data at a 25m² resolution, suitable for local-scale analysis.
• Methodology incorporates specific modifiers like a 30% carbon uplift for habitats overlapping with Ancient Woodland.
• Distinguishes between mineral soils and organo-mineral/peat soils, which have different carbon storage processes.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The dataset is not suitable for field-scale carbon assessment as noted in the description.

Provenance

Source

Natural England

Collection Method

Derived from Soilscapes (1:250,000 scale) and the Natural England Peat Map (2008), conflated and modified with habitat and condition proxies.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-29 12:06:04.583772; freshness should be verified.

Geography

England