ABSTRACT
The arctic tundra is a major ecosystem which plays a significant role as a major repository of the world's carbon. Whether northern peat is still accumulating soil carbon or may actually be losing carbon is a question with important consequences for global change scenarios. The chapter aims to demonstrate the advantages of studying pollen, spores, and other fossil material in tandem with soil properties. It also aims to present some methodologies which soil scientists and paleoecologists can adopt to further understand soil processes, vegetation, and climatic influences in the Arctic. Pollen analysis is a powerful tool for understanding vegetation change and landscape processes. However, the particular conditions of the Arctic, with its dynamic hydrological variation, cryoturbation, and lack of sensitive indicator species, make the paleoecological analysis of most environments and sediments of the arctic tundra, including lakes, peats, and mineral soils, particularly challenging.
