Documents

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is linked to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Loss of SOC is one of the main threats to European and global soils. The impact of climate change, especially warming, on SOC varies by regions but remains poorly understood. To address this, we used Random Forest (RF) to model SOC in topsoil of Europe based on LUCAS data and applied SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) values to interpret spatial patterns. Key findings show temperature is the predominant factor influencing SOC in northern Europe (north of 55°N). Under the RCP4.5 scenario, projected warming over the next 50 years could lead to significant SOC loss around the southern Baltic Sea (55°N-60°N), while regions north of 65°N could experience SOC gain. Regions between 60°N-65°N would have mixed SOC changes or remain stable. The southern Baltic Sea region, with annual mean temperature of 2.5–7.5 °C, is identified as highly sensitive to SOC loss due to warming. These findings have improved our understanding of the spatially varying SOC-temperature relationships and highlighted the need to consider regional SOC dynamics in future soil management and climate-related policies. In addition, agro-environmental actions at the regional scale should be adopted to enhance SOC conservation.

Soil erosion by water is a critical factor contributing to eutrophication in water bodies, acting as a significant source of nitrogen and phosphorus from land. Many models predict soil erosion and sediment transport into lakes and rivers, and the connection between soil erosion triggering eutrophication is considered textbook knowledge. However, limited data-based scientific evidence exists on the consequences of soil erosion and sediment fluxes on eutrophication. This study examines the impact of soil erosion on eutrophication, considering other covariates such as slope, elevation, phosphorus, nitrogen, flow accumulation and temperature, by analyzing zones of varying sizes around lakes in six different countries of Europe covering an area of 1596 km2: Austria (81 lakes), France (310), Germany (266), Hungary (73), Poland (465), and the United Kingdom (316). We utilized multispectral Sentinel-2 satellite remote sensing data at 20-m spatial resolution for 2021 and 2022 to estimate the Floating Algae Index (FAI) of lakes. FAI allowed us to quantify bloom occurrence (BO)—the frequency of detected algal blooms—and maximum bloom extent (MBE)—the total area affected by blooms during the study period. The MBEs were then correlated with the aforementioned covariates within zones of 100 m, 200 m, 500 m, and 1 km distance from the lakes using machine learning algorithms to identify the most significant and thus driving factors within these areas. Our results prove quantitatively that soil erosion is indeed a key driver of eutrophication for all the selected European regions except Austria. Water temperature, nutrient input, and slope are additional important drivers of lake eutrophication.

Globally, soils are subjected to various management practices and stressors which can lead to degradation. This makes their protection essential for sustaining many functions and services as well as maintaining the overall life support system of Earth. National monitoring programmes are increasingly implemented to evaluate the state and trend of soils, a move which has been advocated by the Mission Soil in Europe. In soil science, frameworks have been established to interpret and communicate soil monitoring results, concentrating on the concept of quality, a term which can be interpreted in many ways. This paper explores the multifaceted meaning of soil quality, addressing its implications for future soil health assessments. It achieves this by focusing on the context of the Mission Soil. Soil health is a holistic concept embracing emergence, complexity and highlighting long-term vitality and resilience. In contrast, soil quality is often viewed through the lens of its capacity to meet specific human needs and functions, typically in a shorter timeframe. The concept of quality is assessed through indicators where the choice of framework significantly influences selection and interpretation. However, selecting appropriate soil indicators across Europe is challenging due to diverse climate, topography, geology and soil types, resulting in varied soil processes. Therefore, establishing clear principles and criteria for soil indicator selection is essential. Our paper identifies four distinct frameworks for soil quality assessment: ‘Fitness for Purpose’, ‘Free from Degradation’, ‘External Benchmarking’ and ‘Value Assessment’, with each possessing a unique role and application. Notably, the ‘Free from Degradation’ framework is emphasised for its alignment with soil protection efforts and its relevance to soil threats. This makes it particularly suitable for pan-European assessments conducted by the European Union Soil Observatory (EUSO).

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form mutualistic associations with most land plants and are of pivotal importance for plant growth and nutrition. AM fungi include both the well-known phylum Glomeromycota (G-AMF) and the recently established clade of Endogonomycete fine root endophytes within the phylum Mucoromycota, often viewed as putative AMF (E-AMF). Yet, the global richness of these fungal groups, in particular of E-AMF, is poorly understood. To provide comprehensive global species of G-AMF and E-AMF, we analysed long-read sequencing data of the full-length ITS marker from 4,733 sampling sites across all continents and biomes. Our study provides the first combined estimate of global G-AMF and putative E-AMF richness, far exceeding the numbers and taxa reported so far. 

Loss of soil organic carbon (SOC) from farmland is a key threat to the capacity of soils to provide ecosystem services and exacerbates climate change. In alignment with a published protocol, we conducted a review and meta-analysis of time series of SOC measurements in long-term agricultural experiments to study absolute SOC changes under different agricultural management regimes.

Managing soils to increase organic carbon storage presents a potential opportunity to mitigate and adapt to global change challenges, while providing numerous co-benefits and ecosystem services. However, soils differ widely in their potential for carbon sequestration, and knowledge of biophysical limits to carbon accumulation may aid in informing priority regions. Consequently, there is great interest in assessing whether soils exhibit a maximum capacity for storing organic carbon, particularly within organo–mineral associations given the finite nature of reactive minerals in a soil. While the concept of soil carbon saturation has existed for over 25 years, recent studies have argued for and against its importance. Here, we summarize the conceptual understanding of soil carbon saturation at both micro- and macro-scales, define key terminology, and address common concerns and misconceptions.

In Europe, 60%–70% of soils are considered degraded, underscoring the urgent need for consistent monitoring to prevent further degradation and support evidence-based policies for sustainable soil management. Many countries in Europe have implemented one or more soil monitoring systems (SMSs), often established long before the EU-wide “Land Use/Cover Area frame statistical Survey Soil”, LUCAS Soil program. As a result, their sampling strategies and analytical methodologies vary significantly. The proposed EU Directive on Soil Monitoring and Resilience (Soil Monitoring Law, SML) aims to address these differences by establishing a unified framework for systematic soil health monitoring across the EU. This paper assesses the compatibility of the 25 identified SMSs from countries participating in the EJP SOIL Program with the anticipated requirements of the SML.

Antibiotic resistance (AR) is recognized by the World Health Organization as a major threat to human health, and recent studies highlight the role of microplastics (MPs) in its spread. MPs in the environment may act as vectors for antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Bacterial communities on the plastisphere, the surface of MPs, are influenced by plastic properties, allowing ARB to colonize and form biofilms. These biofilms facilitate the transfer of ARGs within microbial communities. This study analyzed data from the LUCAS soil dataset (885 soil samples across EU countries) using the Emu tool to characterize microbial communities at the genus/species level.

Geochemical multisurface models and their generic parameters for the solid-solution partitioning and speciation of metals have been used for decades. For soils the collective uncertainty and sensitivity of model parameters and soil-specific reactive surface properties has been insufficiently evaluated. We used statistical tools and data of diverse soils to quantify for Cd, Cu and Zn the uncertainty of model parameters and input values of the nonideal competitive adsorption (NICA)-Donnan model for organic matter (OM) coupled with the generalized two-layer model for metal-oxides. Subsequently, we quantified the uncertainty of speciation predictions and the sensitivity to model parameters and input values. Importantly, we established new generic NICA-Donnan parameters that substantially improved model accuracy, especially for Zn. Uncertainties generally followed Cu < Cd < Zn. With OM being the major binding surface across most soils, the affinity parameters (log Ki) were most influential.