The European Commission proposed a new Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive on 5 July to support the EU's pathway to healthy soils by 2050. Healthier soil will also help strengthen resilience against natural disasters.
The European Commission proposed a new Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive on 5 July 2023, with a package of actions for sustainable use of key natural resources.
Soils do not currently receive the same level of legal protection in the EU as air and water despite their essential role in food production, food security and disaster prevention. Healthier, less eroded soil can help reduce incidences of flooding, drought and landslides.
Two major aspects of the Directive on Soil Monitoring and Resilience are to make sustainable soil management the norm, and help produce better data across the EU on soil health.
Healthier soils can also play a major role in disaster management.
When soils can absorb more rainfall, it reduces the intensity of flooding and alleviates the negative effects of drought periods. Some soil bacteria, part of the biodiversity of healthy soils, can also help crop plants tolerate drought.
Healthy soils with functional water retention capacity also support healthy forest ecosystems that are more resilient to wildfires. At the same time, wildfires can cause soil degradation, leading to increased risks of soil erosion, landslides and floods.
Finally, on increasing knowledge and data around soil health, strengthening the knowledge base on soils can contribute to improving disaster risk assessments that recognise the role that soil plays in mitigating disasters.
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