Pollution and Climate Change: Dual Challenges for Soil Health and Agriculture Sustainability
A Special Issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050) belonging to the section "Sustainable Agriculture".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2027 | Viewed by 331
Editors
Interests: soil quality; bioactive compounds; irrigation
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Soil health is a cornerstone of sustainable agriculture, ecosystem functioning, global food security, and a critical component of environmental sustainability. However, it is increasingly threatened by the combined and often synergistic effects of pollution and climate change. These dual pressures are reshaping soil processes, accelerating degradation, altering biogeochemical cycles, and challenging the resilience of agroecosystems worldwide. Addressing these interconnected challenges requires a shift from fragmented approaches toward integrated, system-based perspectives on soil management and sustainability.
We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, which aims to explore how soil pollution and climate change interact to influence soil health and agricultural sustainability across diverse environmental and socio-economic contexts. We particularly welcome contributions that investigate the complex dynamics between contaminant accumulation, climate-driven stressors, and soil ecosystem responses, as well as their implications for productivity, environmental quality, and long-term resilience.
As the urgency of climate action intensifies and land degradation continues to expand globally, sustainable soil management has become a critical priority in both scientific research and policy agendas. At the same time, emerging approaches, such as climate-smart agriculture, carbon sequestration strategies, and nature-based solutions, offer new opportunities to mitigate degradation and enhance ecosystem services. However, these solutions must be evaluated within the broader context of environmental risks, trade-offs, and adaptive capacity.
For this Special Issue we welcome original research articles and reviews. Research areas may include, but need not be limited to, the following topics:
- Soil pollution and contaminant dynamics (e.g., heavy metals, organic and emerging pollutants);
- Climate change impacts on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties;
- Interactions between pollution and climate-driven stressors in soil systems;
- Soil degradation and land degradation processes;
- Carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions from soils;
- Soil biodiversity and ecosystem services;
- Climate-smart agriculture and sustainable land management practices;
- Soil remediation and nature-based solutions;
- Agricultural resilience and adaptation strategies.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Alin Cristian Teuşdea
Dr. Adelina Venig
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- soil health
- climate change
- sustainable agriculture
- land degradation
- soil pollution
- carbon sequestration
- climate-smart agriculture
- ecosystem services
- agricultural resilience
- soil remediation
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