Earth Observation in Support of Sustainable Soils Development

Dear Colleagues,

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development proposes a shared program for the peace and prosperity of people and the planet, now and in the future. The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) #15 on Life on Land aims to protect, restore and promote the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managing forests, combating desertification and stop and reverse land degradation and stop the loss of biodiversity. Moreover, SDG 15.3 specifies by 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, anthropogenic contaminations and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world.

Although the word “soil” is mentioned very little in the SDG text, many of these objectives will not be achieved without improving soil protection and conservation. The fact is that soil is not subject to rules and targets in the way that air and water are, it is increasingly under pressure (climate change, industrialisation and urbanisation, intensive agriculture and livestock farming, etc.) and land degradation (erosion, contamination, loss of organic matter, etc.) continues at an alarming pace, impeding the achievement of other environmental targets. In spite of this, the IPCC report on land degradation states that land is a critical resource that, despite being under threat, can also be part of the solution.

Earth Observation remote sensing techniques (VNIR, SWIR, TIR, microwaves) and their possible assimilation with in situ data may support the analysis and monitoring of soil types and properties (texture, bulk density, mineralogical composition, soil moisture, carbon and nitrogen cycles components, …). The temporal resolutions of remote sensing data, close to real time, allow a better understanding of soil dynamics and their physico-chemical changes. All these improvements can now particularly provide reliable soil indicators and indices leading to the development of sustainable applications in the fields of precision agriculture, risk management and ecosystem management.

Dr. Ernesto Lopez-Baeza
Dr. Antonio Lidón Cerezuela
Dr. José Darrozes
Guest Editors

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