Abstract
Peatlands are wet ecosystems formed by Histosols that account for only 3% of the earth's surface, but store a third of the C stock of all soils. Globally, Histosols are important C sinks formed throughout the Holocene and Late Pleistocene. Water stagnation, nutrient availability, pH and Eh, and the floristic composition of the vegetation that is the parent material of the peat, are factor…