7 July marks International Soil Conservation Day, a key date for remembering the critical importance of this natural resource in food production, climate regulation, biodiversity conservation and desertification prevention.
In a context of accelerated climate change, agricultural intensification and loss of vegetation cover, soil degradation represents one of the greatest environmental threats of our time: more than 33% of the planet’s soils are already degraded, according to the FAO. Restoring soil health is not only essential to ensure food security, but also to achieve many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Soil degradation is advancing silently but relentlessly: erosion, compaction, loss of organic matter and soil biodiversity are threatening the very foundation of life on Earth. Faced with this reality, the conservation, restoration and sustainable management of soil have become urgent and collective tasks.
🔍 In this context, the European project LIFE ScrubsNet is a concrete example of innovation at the service of soil. The project works to restore and enhance the value of low woody vegetation (scrubland) as a key element in the recovery of degraded soils and the resilience of the dehesa-montado system in the face of climate change.
Thanks to pilot farms located in Spain and Portugal, LIFE ScrubsNet promotes actions that regenerate soil fertility, improve its structure, increase subsoil biodiversity and encourage extensive livestock farming compatible with conservation.
🌱 Because conserving soil means conserving life.
On 7 July, we reaffirm our commitment to protecting soil through science, action on the ground and collaboration between rural stakeholders, researchers and government.
📌 Find out more about our actions at: https://lifescrubsnet.eu
#SoilDay #SoilHealth #LIFEScrubsNet #LivingSoils #ClimateChange #Agroecology #EcologicalRestoration #SDG15 #MediterraneanPastures #SoilConservation