EUROPEAN SOIL PARTNERSHIP
Elena Havlicek Federal Office for the Environment CH
European Soil Partnership
• ESP launch: 31.10.2013 (Berlin – Global Soil Week)
• ESP governance Partners :
- about 90 European organizations
- 33 national FP
Steering committee
- 1 chair and 2 vice-chairs (Switzerland, Turkey, Italy), EASP secretariat (Russian Federation)
- Secretariat (JRC)
- 5 Working Groups
- 1 ITPS member, GSP secretariat
European Soil Partnership
European context • Main threats
Soil sealing and land take
Source: Le Temps (November 2016)
European context • Main threats
Contamination
European context • Main threats
Contamination
Cd-Pb : Modelled final maps of MTE concentration in topsoil [mg kg-1] Lado et al. 2008
European context • Main threats
Agricultural soils (erosion, compaction)
European context • Main threats
Soil organic carbon, loss of biodiversity
Map of change in soil carbon due to land use change and land management from 1860 to 2010 from three vegetation models. Pink indicates loss of soil carbon, blue indicates carbon gain.
• The primary driver of loss in soil organic
carbon is land use change.
• When land is converted from native forest to crops, soil carbon decreases by about 40%. When
• When pasture is converted to crops the reduction in soil carbon is even greater – about 60%.
GSP
European context • Main threats
Soil organic carbon, loss of biodiversity
Global Soil Biodiversity Atlas 2016
European context • Main challenges
Sustainable soil management (not only protection)
European context • Main challenges
Sustainable soil management (“biological factory”)
European Soil Biodiversity Atlas 2010
European context • Main forces
Knowledge
Practices
Experience
European context
• One question remaining…
we know the threat
we know the solution
where is the problem???
• Main forces
Knowledge
Practices
Experience
> Morning session: answers & open issues!
Paradigm shift Soil is a complex system (interactions, feedbacks, etc.)
Soil is a biological system
Soil provides ecosystem services
Soil has multiple functions
agriculture and forestry
Waste disposal
Contaminated sites
SPATIAL
PLANNING element cycles
Biodiversity
aboveground
belowground
Water cycle
Climate change
URBANIZATION
SOIL
PROTECTION
THREATS
REACTIVE
MANAGEMENT
FUNCTIONS
PROACTIVE
PROTECTION AGAINST THREATS
Precautionary measures eg. reduction of emission of
pollutants (air pollution control, waste recycling)
GLOBAL SOIL MANAGEMENT
eg. direct payment (agricultural policy)
PROTECTION MEASURES
eg. soil use restriction or prohibition (indirect) or soil
protection measures (direct)
SOIL STRATEGY
Production (food, fiber)
Regulation (C cycle, water, nutriments)
Habitat (biodiversity)
Support (human activities, construction)
Archive (human and natural history)
Raw material (eg. sand or gravel)
QUALITATIVE THREATS
eg. contamination, erosion, compaction
PROTECTION OF FUNCTIONS
Function-based decision-making
Integration in spatial planning
Paradigm shift
European context
AGRICULTURE and forestry
Waste disposal
Contaminated sites
SPATIAL
PLANNING element cycles
Water cycle
CLIMATE
CHANGE URBANIZATION
SOIL
Biodiversity
aboveground
belowground
Food security (SDG’s)
Climate change
Soil organic matter management
GLOBAL
LEVEL
European context
AGRICULTURE and forestry
Waste disposal
Contaminated sites
SPATIAL
PLANNING element cycles
Water cycle
CLIMATE
CHANGE URBANIZATION
SOIL
Biodiversity
aboveground
belowground
Food security (environmental and social soil security)
Climate change
Soil organic matter management
Urbanization
Spatial planning
EUROPEAN
LEVEL
European context
> What is / should be the added value of the European Soil Partnership?
European network of networks
RESEARCH GOVERNMENT NATIONAL LEVEL
IMPLEMENTATION LEVEL
ESP
SOIL SOCIETIES / NGOs
INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
INTERNATIONAL MONITORING
NATIONAL MONITORING
WG Pillars
WG SOC
WG xxx
Working groups
AGENCY
UNCCD SDG’s
FAO
JRC
IMPLEMENTATION
European network of networks
RESEARCH GOVERNMENT NATIONAL LEVEL
IMPLEMENTATION LEVEL
ESP
SOIL SOCIETIES / NGOs
INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
INTERNATIONAL MONITORING
NATIONAL MONITORING
WG Pillars
WG SOC
WG xxx
Working groups
AGENCY
UNCCD SDG’s
FAO
JRC
IMPLEMENTATION
European network of networks
RESEARCH GOVERNMENT NATIONAL LEVEL
IMPLEMENTATION LEVEL
ESP
SOIL SOCIETIES / NGOs
INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
INTERNATIONAL MONITORING
NATIONAL MONITORING
WG Pillars
WG SOC
WG xxx
Working groups
AGENCY
UNCCD SDG’s
FAO
JRC
IMPLEMENTATION
SOIL PROPERTIES
SOIL FUNCTIONS
SOIL USE
© Brändle, Zimmermann / Chervet
Agroscope / LANAT BE
SOIL USE LAND USES
SOIL PROPERTIES CHEMICAL, PHYSICAL AND
BIOLOGICAL STATE
SOIL FUNCTIONS POTENTIAL TO PROVIDE ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
SOIL USE AFFECTS
SOIL PROPERTIES
SITE SPECIFIC CHARACTERISTICS
Integration of soil functions into spatial planning policy
Example of a map including total soil functions
Ricarda Miller «Bodenfunktionsbewertung für die Raum- und Bauleitplanung in Hessen und Rheinland-Pfalz» September 2012 (https://umweltministerium.hessen.de/umwelt-natur/boden/veranstaltungen/bodenschutzforum-2012)
Soil protection on construction sites
Soil protection on construction sites > Techniques
> Policy, regulations, guidelines
> Specialists of SPCS certification
European Soil Partnership • Main objectives
Coordination
Sustainable soil management practices and systems (urban, forest, agriculture)
Identification of SSM adapted to European context
• Main objectives
Coordination
Sustainable soil management practices and systems (urban, forest, agriculture)
Establishment of networks > scientific knowledge
European Soil Partnership
• Main objectives
Coordination
Sustainable soil management practices and systems (urban, forest, agriculture)
Establishment of networks > practitioners, advisors, etc.
European Soil Partnership
• Main objectives
Coordination
Sustainable soil management practices and systems (urban, forest, agriculture) «…soil protection legislation is a preventive medecine applied to a frail patient who suffers from an orphan disease »
C. Guy-Ecabert 2008 Remarques liminaires ad art. 33-35
European Soil Partnership
Coordination
Cooperation
Communication
Make our soils great again…
European Soil Partnership