Interestingly, the Wikipedia article for coal formation links to this paper which refuted the idea that coal formation was primarily attributable to the delayed

Interestingly, the Wikipedia article for coal formation links to this paper which refuted the idea that coal formation was primarily attributable to the delayed agility of microorganisms to break down lignin during the Carboniferous period: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4780611 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4780611