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Pau Sellés
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Martes, 7 de enero 2025, 11:45
"It is urgent to stop the biological degradation of soil in southeastern Spain." This is one of the main conclusions of Soilguard, a European project involving the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH), which has recently been recognised internationally by the IPBES (Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) and the ERC (European Research Council).
According to a press release from UMH, preliminary results from Soilguard confirm that sustainable management "significantly improves soil biodiversity and multifunctionality, even in contexts of drought and extreme temperatures." The project, led at UMH by Professor of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry Fuensanta García Orenes, has focused its work on evaluating the resilience of agricultural soils in the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula dedicated to cultivation with different types of production, organic or conventional.
Fuensanta García
Project Leader
"Drought has a clear effect on the biodiversity of agricultural soils; however, there is a possible masking due to current climate change conditions, which make it difficult to immediately observe specific impacts," explains Fuensanta García. For the expert, "both in conventional and organic agricultural management, urgent actions are needed to stop the biological degradation of soil. In semi-arid areas like our region, sustainable agricultural practices should be applied to improve soil quality in the long term.
Soil biodiversity, which hosts about 60% of the planet's living organisms according to very recent studies, is essential for maintaining the biogeochemical cycles that make life possible. At the same time, it preserves ecosystem services such as carbon storage and water regulation.
"Soils with greater biodiversity have a higher resilience capacity and can maintain essential functions under stress conditions," explains Fuensanta García. Soilguard studies conducted in the Murcia-Granada highlands show that techniques such as crop rotation, zero or minimal tillage when necessary, and the use of organic fertilizers improve soil health and help mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
For these reasons, international organisations IPBES and ERC have highlighted Soilguard for its ability to offer practical solutions to global challenges such as soil degradation and climate change. The IPBES Intergovernmental Panel is a platform of experts that assesses the condition of biodiversity and ecosystem services globally, while the European Research Council (ERC) funds frontier science projects in Europe.
"The recognition from these organisations makes it clear that the international community places great importance on the fight against soil degradation," declares the UMH Soil Science expert, who is "proud that UMH focuses scientific efforts on finding solutions to environmental problems, both local and global, that involve biodiversity loss."
The Soilguard project at UMH involves a team of internationally renowned researchers. In addition to García Orenes, Jorge Mataix Solera, Luis D. Olivares, Minerva Gracia Carmona, Victoria Arcenegui, Manuel M. Jordán, and José Navarro Pedreño are participating. Along with the project's other international partners, they are developing a pan-European database to identify key soil health indicators.
This will allow standardisation of evaluation criteria and recommend sustainable practices. Additionally, they are creating the digital application 'Soilguardians', which will enable farmers to monitor the state of their soils and adopt sustainable strategies based on scientific data. The project's results will also be used to advise the European Union and international organisations in formulating policies aimed at protecting soils and ensuring their long-term sustainability.
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