The palsas are dry, ombrotrophic plateaus (or hummocks) with permafrost cores that raise the peat surface above its surroundings that is the wet minerotrophic depressions, largely permafrost free and water saturated.
[1] A peat layer up to 3 m deep covers most of the area and is an indication of a net carbon accumulation over the past 5000 years.
In the areas underlying by permafrost the active layer reaches a thickness of about 60 cm in the late summer.
The mire experiences thermokarst erosion, with the ongoing permafrost thawing that leads to degradation and collapse of the palsa structure, converting it into the wetter surface types.
To the east the mire is bordered by the shallow Lake Villasjön (max depth 1.3 m) whereas it is in general largely surrounded by mountain birch forest.