Articles | Volume 6, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-6-453-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-6-453-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Original research article
| 
05 Oct 2020
Original research article |
| 05 Oct 2020
| 05 Oct 2020
Targeting the soil quality and soil health concepts when aiming for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the EU Green Deal
Antonello Bonfante
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute for Mediterranean Agricultural and Forestry Systems, National Research Council, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
Angelo Basile
Institute for Mediterranean Agricultural and Forestry Systems, National Research Council, 80055 Portici, Naples, Italy
Johan Bouma
Soil Science, Wageningen University, 6708 Wageningen, the Netherlands
retired
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Antonello Bonfante, Fabio Terribile, and Johan Bouma
SOIL, 5, 1–14, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-1-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-1-2019, 2019
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This study is restricted to soil physical aspects of soil quality and health with the objective to define procedures with worldwide rather than only regional applicability, reflecting modern developments in soil physical research and focusing on important questions regarding possible effects of soil degradation and climate change.
F. Terribile, A. Agrillo, A. Bonfante, G. Buscemi, M. Colandrea, A. D'Antonio, R. De Mascellis, C. De Michele, G. Langella, P. Manna, L. Marotta, F. A. Mileti, L. Minieri, N. Orefice, S. Valentini, S. Vingiani, and A. Basile
Solid Earth, 6, 903–928, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-903-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-903-2015, 2015
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Here we aim to demonstrate that a dpatial decision support system based on geospatial cyberinfrastructure (GCI) can profitably address many contrasting demands on our landscape concerning agriculture and environment as well as many land degradation problems.
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A. Bonfante, A. Agrillo, R. Albrizio, A. Basile, R. Buonomo, R. De Mascellis, A. Gambuti, P. Giorio, G. Guida, G. Langella, P. Manna, L. Minieri, L. Moio, T. Siani, and F. Terribile
SOIL, 1, 427–441, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-1-427-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-1-427-2015, 2015
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This paper aims to test a new physically oriented approach to viticulture zoning at the farm scale which is strongly rooted in hydropedology and aims to achieve a better use of environmental features with respect to plant requirement and wine production. The physics of our approach are defined by the use of soil-plant-atmosphere simulation models which apply physically based equations to describe the soil hydrological processes and solve soil-plant water status.
Dario Autovino, Antonio Coppola, Roberto De Mascellis, Mohammad Farzamian, and Angelo Basile
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2696, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2696, 2025
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In this article, we developed a method to better understand how soil water moisture and salt content affect electrical signals measured from the surface by electromagnetic induction technique. This helps farmers manage irrigation, especially in areas using salty water. By combining field and lab data, we could tell how much each factor—water or salt—affected the signal. This technique offers a faster, easier way to track soil health and could improve how we use water in farming.
Binyam Alemu Yosef, Angelo Basile, Antonio Coppola, Fabrizio Ungaro, and Marialaura Bancheri
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This study investigates the intricate relationship between soil properties and water-related processes, with a focus on their collective impact on ecosystem service provision. Key soil characteristics were analyzed for their role in regulating the overall hydrological balance, in three diverse regions. The study highlights the value of using these properties in predictive models for water management practices to optimize crop performance and soil conservation in different agricultural settings.
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We reviewed the literature on soil health definition, indicators and assessment frameworks, highlighting sensing technologies' significant potential to improve current time-consuming and costly assessment methods. We proposed a soil health assessment framework from an ecological perspective free from human bias, that leverages proximal sensing, remote sensing, machine learning, and sensor data fusion to enable objective, rapid, cost-effective, scalable, and integrative assessments.
Johan Bouma
SOIL, 8, 751–759, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-8-751-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-8-751-2022, 2022
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In the new
Soil Deal for Europe, land users, mostly farmers, and scientists are required to work jointly in
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lighthousesthat demonstrate successful sustainable land use systems, functioning as inspiring examples. A case study illustrates the important role of soils.
Giovanna Dragonetti, Mohammad Farzamian, Angelo Basile, Fernando Monteiro Santos, and Antonio Coppola
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 5119–5136, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5119-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5119-2022, 2022
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Soil hydraulic and hydrodispersive properties are necessary for modeling water and solute fluxes in agricultural and environmental systems. Despite the major efforts in developing methods (e.g., lab-based, pedotransfer functions), their characterization at applicative scales remains an imperative requirement. Thus, this paper proposes a noninvasive in situ method integrating electromagnetic induction and hydrological modeling to estimate soil hydraulic and transport properties at the plot scale.
Mohammad Farzamian, Dario Autovino, Angelo Basile, Roberto De Mascellis, Giovanna Dragonetti, Fernando Monteiro Santos, Andrew Binley, and Antonio Coppola
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1509–1527, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1509-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1509-2021, 2021
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Soil salinity is a serious threat in numerous arid and semi-arid areas of the world. Given this threat, efficient field assessment methods are needed to monitor the dynamics of soil salinity in salt-affected lands efficiently. We demonstrate that rapid and non-invasive geophysical measurements modelled by advanced numerical analysis of the signals and coupled with hydrological modelling can provide valuable information to assess the spatio-temporal variability in soil salinity over large areas.
Antonello Bonfante, Fabio Terribile, and Johan Bouma
SOIL, 5, 1–14, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-1-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-1-2019, 2019
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This study is restricted to soil physical aspects of soil quality and health with the objective to define procedures with worldwide rather than only regional applicability, reflecting modern developments in soil physical research and focusing on important questions regarding possible effects of soil degradation and climate change.
Fabio Terribile, Michela Iamarino, Giuliano Langella, Piero Manna, Florindo Antonio Mileti, Simona Vingiani, and Angelo Basile
Solid Earth, 9, 63–74, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-63-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-63-2018, 2018
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Andic soils have unique morphological, physical and chemical properties that induce both considerable soil fertility and great vulnerability to land degradation. Here we attempt to show that soils rich in poorly crystalline clay minerals have an utmost ecological importance.
Our results are hoped to be a starting point for better understanding the ecological importance of andic soils and also possibly to better consider pedological information in carbon balance calculations.
Johan Bouma
SOIL, 3, 153–159, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-3-153-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-3-153-2017, 2017
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Alexander von Humboldt was an inspiring scientist in the early 1800s, traveling widely, making many measurements, and linking different scientific disciplines while keeping an eye open to the needs of society. This is particularly relevant today in our information society, and researchers in developing countries are advised to follow the von Humboldt example when planning their future research.
Johan Bouma and Luca Montanarella
SOIL, 2, 135–145, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-2-135-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-2-135-2016, 2016
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The recently accepted UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a major challenge to the research community, including soil science. SDGs require a interdisciplinary research approach that forces every discipline to critically evaluate its core messages. Effective communication with the policy arena requires use of common policy concepts such as policy phases and distinction of drivers, pressures, and responses to change. To accomodate such needs, research practices will have to change.
Saskia D. Keesstra, Johan Bouma, Jakob Wallinga, Pablo Tittonell, Pete Smith, Artemi Cerdà, Luca Montanarella, John N. Quinton, Yakov Pachepsky, Wim H. van der Putten, Richard D. Bardgett, Simon Moolenaar, Gerben Mol, Boris Jansen, and Louise O. Fresco
SOIL, 2, 111–128, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-2-111-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-2-111-2016, 2016
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Soil science, as a land-related discipline, has links to several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals which are demonstrated through the functions of soils and related ecosystem services. We discuss how soil scientists can rise to the challenge both internally and externally in terms of our relations with colleagues in other disciplines, diverse groups of stakeholders and the policy arena. To meet these goals we recommend the set of steps to be taken by the soil science community as a whole.
F. Terribile, A. Agrillo, A. Bonfante, G. Buscemi, M. Colandrea, A. D'Antonio, R. De Mascellis, C. De Michele, G. Langella, P. Manna, L. Marotta, F. A. Mileti, L. Minieri, N. Orefice, S. Valentini, S. Vingiani, and A. Basile
Solid Earth, 6, 903–928, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-903-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-903-2015, 2015
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Here we aim to demonstrate that a dpatial decision support system based on geospatial cyberinfrastructure (GCI) can profitably address many contrasting demands on our landscape concerning agriculture and environment as well as many land degradation problems.
In this paper, we discuss methods and results of a special kind of GCI architecture, highly focused on soil and land conservation, developed in the framework of the SOILCONSWEB LIFE+ project.
S. Vingiani, G. Mele, R. De Mascellis, F. Terribile, and A. Basile
Solid Earth, 6, 783–797, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-783-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-6-783-2015, 2015
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An integrated soil study was carried out on landslides which have occurred on the steep northern slopes of Mt. Vezzi on the island of Ischia (Italy). The studied soils showed a substantial abrupt discontinuity in all the studied properties along a buried fine ash layer (namely, the 2C horizon). Nevertheless, only the identification of a layer of thin, finely stratified ash on the top of 2C, by optical microscopy, enabled us to assume this interface to be an impeding layer for water fluxes.
A. Bonfante, A. Agrillo, R. Albrizio, A. Basile, R. Buonomo, R. De Mascellis, A. Gambuti, P. Giorio, G. Guida, G. Langella, P. Manna, L. Minieri, L. Moio, T. Siani, and F. Terribile
SOIL, 1, 427–441, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-1-427-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-1-427-2015, 2015
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This paper aims to test a new physically oriented approach to viticulture zoning at the farm scale which is strongly rooted in hydropedology and aims to achieve a better use of environmental features with respect to plant requirement and wine production. The physics of our approach are defined by the use of soil-plant-atmosphere simulation models which apply physically based equations to describe the soil hydrological processes and solve soil-plant water status.
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Rosa M. Poch, Lucia H. C. dos Anjos, Rafla Attia, Megan Balks, Adalberto Benavides-Mendoza, Martha M. Bolaños-Benavides, Costanza Calzolari, Lydia M. Chabala, Peter C. de Ruiter, Samuel Francke-Campaña, Fernando García Préchac, Ellen R. Graber, Siosiua Halavatau, Kutaiba M. Hassan, Edmond Hien, Ke Jin, Mohammad Khan, Maria Konyushkova, David A. Lobb, Matshwene E. Moshia, Jun Murase, Generose Nziguheba, Ashok K. Patra, Gary Pierzynski, Natalia Rodríguez Eugenio, and Ronald Vargas Rojas
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Short summary
Soil health is an important term in the international policy arena when considering soil contributions to sustainable development. We propose a measurement method, lacking so far, and explore differences within the term soil quality. The latter describes the inherent properties of soils, while soil health focuses on actual health. The procedure is illustrated for three Italian soil types, also showing the effects of climate change, demonstrating that each soil is significantly different.
Soil health is an important term in the international policy arena when considering soil...
