Posts

61% of European soil is unhealthy, JRC confirms
Joint Research Centre data snapshot the health of continental soils, showing numbers in line with past predictions. Organic carbon reduction, biodiversity loss and peatland deterioration are the most widespread problems

Green deal, new EU targets approved for carbon sequestration
The European Parliament approved the revision of the regulation relating to the LULUCF (Land use and forestry sector). By 2030, the sector will have to guarantee the absorption of 310 Mt of CO2, 15% more than today. Expected binding obligations for all EU Member States

Global agriculture must reduce its dependence on phosphorus
Half of the available phosphorus in the soil comes from mineral fertilizers. Europe, Asia and North America show the highest concentrations. French researchers, "We need to accelerate the agroecological transition in rich countries by allocating the remaining resources to the global South"

Pesticide impact on plants and soil grows in Germany
Over the past 25 years, pesticide total toxicity in Germany has increased for fish, land plants and soil organisms, a research from the Technical University of Kaiserslautern-Landau has found. EU wants to cut use of chemicals in half by 2030 but its metrics are not convincing

EU agriculture mixes strategies against climate and geopolitical shocks
Combining different crops and mixing agriculture with livestock and forest management makes it possible to better respond to climate challenges and current crises. From Horizon magazine, a review of two European projects

Chinese scientists provide first global map of antibiotic resistance in soil
Researchers from Shanghai University described the global distribution of antibiotic-resistant genes in the soil. The phenomenon is especially evident in Europe, America and Asia. And is a threat to animal and human health

French banks criticized as they financed deforestation with more than €700 mln
NGO's accusation: banks BNP Paribas, Société Générale, Crédit Agricole and the Banque Populaire et Caisse d'Epargne group allegedly financially supported the beef and soy bean giants responsible for Amazon deforestation

Forests, climate and carbon storage: the lesson of Finnish trees
A 20-year survey by the Helsinki Ministry of Agriculture highlights the role of trees in promoting soil carbon storage. Logging reduces the amount retained. Some species prove more successful than others in sequestration

Climate, italian CNR: ice-free Arctic summer by 2050
A National Research Council study published in PNAS reconstructed changes in sub-polar sea ice cover in response to rapid climate warming of the last ice age. The answers offer an alarming scenario of the Arctic situation by mid-century

Drones open a new frontier in soil mapping
Drones equipped with light spectrometers can map the ground and explore otherwise inaccessible areas, Dutch researchers have found. This application can also provide crucial data for soil protection and remediation