TY - JOUR
T1 - Sustainable soil management: Soil knowledge use and gaps in Europe
AU - Hvarregaard Thorsøe, Martin
AU - Keesstra, Saskia
AU - De Boever, Maarten
AU - Buchová, Kristina
AU - Bøe, Frederik
AU - L. Castanheira, Nádia
AU - Chenu, Claire
AU - Cornu, Sophie
AU - Don, Axel
AU - Fohrafellner, Julia
AU - Farina, Roberta
AU - Fornara, Dario
AU - da Conceição Gonçalves, Maria
AU - Graversgaard, Morten
AU - Heller, Olivier
AU - Inselsbacher, Erich
AU - Jacobs, Anna
AU - Mavsar, Sara
AU - H.E. Meurer, Katharina
AU - Mihelič, Rok
AU - O'Sullivan, Lilian
AU - Pulido-Moncada, Mansonia
AU - Ruysschaert, Greet
AU - Sviček, Michal
AU - Tähtikarhu, Mika
AU - Vanino, Silvia
AU - Vervuurt, Wieke
AU - Zechmeister-Boltenstern, Sophie
AU - Juhl Munkholm, Lars
PY - 2023/11/27
Y1 - 2023/11/27
N2 - Soils are the foundation of agricultural production, ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Bridging soil knowledge gaps and improving the knowledge system is crucial to meet the growing EU soil policy ambitions in the face of climate change and the ongoing trend in soil degradation. The objective of this article is to assess the current state of knowledge, knowledge use and knowledge gaps concerning sustainable soil management in Europe. This study is based on interviews with 791 stakeholders and 254 researchers and on a comprehensive review of >1800 documents carried out under the European Joint Programme (EJP) on agricultural soils. Despite differences in stakeholder groups, the conclusions are rather consistent and complementary. We identified major knowledge gaps with respect to 1) soil carbon stocks, 2) soil degradation and fertility, and 3) strategies for improved soil management. Transcending these three areas, particularly the loss of soil organic carbon (SOC), peatland degradation, and soil compaction are most critical, thus, we stress the urgency of developing more models and monitoring programmes on soils. Stakeholders further report that insufficient transfer of existing soil research findings to practitioners is a hindrance to the adoption of sustainable soil management practices. In addition to knowledge production, soil knowledge gaps may be addressed by considering seven recommendations from the stakeholders: 1) raising awareness, 2) strengthening knowledge brokers, 3) improving relevance of research activities and resource allocation for land users, 4) peer-to-peer communication, 5) targeting advice and information, 6) improving knowledge access and 7) providing incentives. We argue that filling and bridging knowledge gaps should be a priority for policy makers and the insights provided in the article may help prioritize research and dissemination needs enabling a transition to more sustainable soil management in Europe.
AB - Soils are the foundation of agricultural production, ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Bridging soil knowledge gaps and improving the knowledge system is crucial to meet the growing EU soil policy ambitions in the face of climate change and the ongoing trend in soil degradation. The objective of this article is to assess the current state of knowledge, knowledge use and knowledge gaps concerning sustainable soil management in Europe. This study is based on interviews with 791 stakeholders and 254 researchers and on a comprehensive review of >1800 documents carried out under the European Joint Programme (EJP) on agricultural soils. Despite differences in stakeholder groups, the conclusions are rather consistent and complementary. We identified major knowledge gaps with respect to 1) soil carbon stocks, 2) soil degradation and fertility, and 3) strategies for improved soil management. Transcending these three areas, particularly the loss of soil organic carbon (SOC), peatland degradation, and soil compaction are most critical, thus, we stress the urgency of developing more models and monitoring programmes on soils. Stakeholders further report that insufficient transfer of existing soil research findings to practitioners is a hindrance to the adoption of sustainable soil management practices. In addition to knowledge production, soil knowledge gaps may be addressed by considering seven recommendations from the stakeholders: 1) raising awareness, 2) strengthening knowledge brokers, 3) improving relevance of research activities and resource allocation for land users, 4) peer-to-peer communication, 5) targeting advice and information, 6) improving knowledge access and 7) providing incentives. We argue that filling and bridging knowledge gaps should be a priority for policy makers and the insights provided in the article may help prioritize research and dissemination needs enabling a transition to more sustainable soil management in Europe.
KW - EJP SOIL
KW - soil health
KW - soil policy
KW - soil use challenges
KW - stakeholder involvement
KW - sustainable soil management
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/874c19e1-b65a-3e80-9117-e6c9a479faef/
U2 - 10.1111/ejss.13439
DO - 10.1111/ejss.13439
M3 - A1: Web of Science-article
SN - 1365-2389
VL - 74
JO - European Journal of Soil Science
JF - European Journal of Soil Science
IS - 6
M1 - e13439
ER -