Soils are a double-edged climate sword. They are huge reservoirs of organic carbon and can act as a carbon sink. But they can also release CO2 into the atmosphere when used unsustainably. Forests are often called the lungs of the planet because of the way they "breathe" in carbon dioxide. The role…

The GEO regional assessments provide detailed analysis of regional environmental challenges as well as key findings and policy messages for each of the 6 UNEP regions. These are important for policy makers working in the regions to provide solid evidence and policy options which will help tackle…

The world’s soils store more carbon than the planet’s biomass and atmosphere combined. An increase of just 1% of the carbon stocks in the top metre of soils would be higher than the amount corresponding to the annual anthropogenic CO2 emissions from fossil fuel burning. Many innovations in…

Sampling and analysis or visual examination of soil to assess its status and use potential is widely practiced from plot to national scales. However, the choice of relevant soil attributes and interpretation of measurements are not straightforward, because of the complexity and site-specificity of…

A study just published by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Nature Climate Change shows that soils can be a net sink of greenhouse gases through increased storage of organic carbon.

Have a look at some articles: You have full text access to this OnlineOpen article Experimental and statistical study of saturated hydraulic conductivity and relations with other soil properties of a desert soil (pages 256–264) Persistent carbon loss from the humus layer of tilled boreal forest soil…

To celebrate 30 years of activities the ESSC is organizing the SoWaSe-ESSC International Conference on ‘Soil and Water Security: Challenges for the next 30 years!’

A Special Issue on Soil Organic Carbon and its influence on agricultural and environmental effects is open for contributions in Agronomy (E. Lugato). A Special issue on “Soil Erosion by Water” is open in Water MDPI. Another Special issue on the workshops of soil erosion modelling (Ispra, Seoul) is…

The Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils has completed the first State of the World's Soil Resources Report. Globally soil erosion was identified as the gravest threat, leading to deteriorating water quality in developed regions and to lowering of crop yields in many developing regions. We…

Soil, a natural four‐dimensional body at the atmosphere–lithosphere interface, is organic‐carbon‐mediated realm in which solid, liquid, and gaseous phases interact at a range of scales and generate numerous ecosystem goods and services. Soil organic carbon (SOC) strongly impacts soil quality,…

Special Issue Title: Salt Soil Improvement and Efficient Development

Land Degradation & Development Volume 29, Issue 4 Pages i - i, 861 - 1302, April 2018 RESEARCH ARTICLES

Results from a long-running field experiment suggest that a major group of plants could thrive as the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases.

RESEARCH ARTICLES The sheep in wolf‘s clothing? Recognizing threats for land degradation in Iceland using state-and-transition models I.C. Barrio, D.S. Hik, J. Thórsson, K. Svavarsdóttir, B. Marteinsdóttir and I.S. Jónsdóttir Accepted manuscript online: 20 APR 2018 12:00AM EST | DOI: 10.1002/ldr…

In this report, the notion of soil as an integral part of ecosystems and natural capital is explored and thus focused on the stock of the soil resource and the flows of valuable goods and services that can be derived from this stock. The concept of natural capital recognises soil as an asset that is…

Copper (Cu) distribution in soil is influenced by climatic, geological and pedological factors. Apart from geological sources and industrial pollution, other anthropogenic sources, related to the agricultural activity, may increase copper levels in soils, especially in permanent crops such as olive…

The publication is devoted to the deserts of the world and desertification as a global phenomenon of land degradation. Encyclopedia contains more than 1000 articles, which describe the deserts of the world; Large lakes and transit rivers crossing the deserts; general terms on climate, vegetation,…

FAO report calls for a more pro-active and long-term planning to become more resilient against droughts

Contamination of land by persistent organic pollutants has significant implications for human health and for future development potential. Bioremediation is an effective method for reducing the concentrations of such contaminants to below harmful levels, but the presence of co‐contaminants may…

Governments should invest in healthy, living soils by channeling agricultural subsidies towards sustainable farming methods. If done right, agriculture can conserve the diversity of species found in soils, helping halt land degradation and desertification. This in turn helps countries ensure future…

The Responsabilité & Environnement series publishes quarterly thematic files on topics related to risks, sustainable development and energy and raw materials. Led by an industry specialist under the editorial board of the series, each issue presents a wide range of complementary perspectives,…

The report — Mechanized: Transforming Africa’s Agriculture Value Chains—summarizes the findings of a systematic analysis of what countries at the forefront of progress in mechanization have done right. It analyzes which policy decisions were taken and which interventions were implemented to…

The GIZ programme 'Soil protection and rehabilitation for food security', in collaboration with University of Leeds and ICRISAT has developed the new Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) 'Land Matters! Integrating soil degradation concerns and solutions into policy processes'. The registration for the…

Soil organic matter (SOM) supports the Earth's ability to sustain terrestrial ecosystems, provide food and fiber, and retains the largest pool of actively cycling carbon. Over 75% of the soil organic carbon (SOC) in the top meter of soil is directly affected by human land use. Large land areas have…

Despite the wide recognition of the importance of soils, soil protection efforts in European Union have been partial, fragmented and insufficient to halt their degra­dation. Calls for improving this situation have increasingly come from scientists, policymakers, non-governmental organisations and…