SOIL MANAGEMENT
1. Context
World Soil Day (WSD) 2022, annually observed on December 5, aligns with this, WSD 2022, with its guiding theme, 'Soils: Where food begins', is a means to raise awareness on the importance of maintaining healthy soils, ecosystems and human well-being by addressing the growing challenges in soil management, encouraging societies to improve soil health, and advocating the sustainable management of soil.
2. Soil Degradation
Soil degradation is the decline in soil condition caused by its improper use of poor management, usually for agricultural, industrial, or urban purposes.
3. Impact of Soil Degradation
Today, nutrient loss and pollution significantly threaten soils, and thereby undermine nutrition and food security globally. The main drivers contributing to soil degradation are industrial activities, mining, waste management, agriculture, fossil fuel extraction, processing, and transport emissions.
3.1 Climate Change
Carbon stored in soil is 3 times more than that found in living plants, and 2 times more than in the atmosphere, which means the soil is crucial for carbon sequestration. If the world's soils are not revitalized, they could release 850 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere contributing to climate change. This is more than all of humanity's emissions combined in the last 30 years.
3.2 Water Scarcity
Depleted soils cannot absorb and regulate water flows. Lack of water retention leads to water scarcity, droughts & floods. Organic matter can hold up to 90% of its weight in water and release slowly over time. This is a big help in drought-prone areas.
3.3 Loss of Biodiversity
Scientists say that around 27000 species of life forms are becoming extinct every year due to loss of habitat.
The crisis has reached a point where 80% of the insect biomass has gone.
Loss of biodiversity further disrupts the soil habitat and prevents soil regeneration.
4. Soil Health and food production
- Food security is one of the core indicators of economic development. The modernization of agriculture has brought huge dividends in terms of ensuring food security to large swathes of people, apart from improving crop production.
- A key element of sustainable food production is healthy soil because nearly 95 percent of global food production depends on soil. The current status of soil health is worrisome.
- While soil degradation is believed to occur in 145 million hectares in India, 96.40 million hectares about 30 percent of the total geographical area are estimated to be affected by land degradation.
- Globally, the biophysical status of 5,670 million hectares of land is declining, of which 1,660 million hectares (29 percent) is attributed to human-induced land degradation, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s ‘State of Land, Soil and Water report.
5. India's Conservation Strategy
The Government of India is implementing a five-pronged strategy for soil conservation. This includes making soil chemical-free, saving soil biodiversity, enhancing SOM, maintaining soil moisture, mitigating soil degradation, and preventing soil erosion.
5.1 Soil Health Card Scheme:
It is a Government of India scheme promoted by the Department of Agriculture & Co-operation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare.
A Soil Health Card is used to assess the current status of soil health and, when used over time, to determine changes in soil health that are affected by land management.
5.2 Rashtriya Krishi Vigyan Yojana (RKVY)
The thrust area is to protect the loss of topsoil, improve soil fertility, and enhance crop production, and land and water productivity of watershed areas comprising wastelands, river valleys, and the eco-system as a whole.
The program is implemented with the Department of Agriculture as the Nodal Agency.
5.3 National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)
It promotes traditional indigenous practices such as organic farming and natural farming, thereby reducing dependency on chemicals and other agri-inputs, and decreasing the monetary burden on smallholder farmers.
5.4 The food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) undertakes multiple activities to support the government of India's efforts in soil conservation towards fostering sustainable agrifood systems.
6. Working with Target States
- The FAO in association with the Ministry of Rural Development supports the Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission's (DAY-NRLM) Community Resource persons to increase their capacities towards supporting on-farm livelihoods for the adoption of sustainable and resilient practices, organic certification and Agri-Nutri-gardens.
- The FAO works in eight target states namely Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, and Punjab for boosting crop diversification and landscape-level planning.
- In Andhra Prades, the FAO is partnering with the state government and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to support farmers in sustainable transitions to agroecological approaches and organic farming.
For Prelims & Mains
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For Prelims: World Soil Day (WSD), Soil Health Card Scheme, Rashtriya Krishi Vigyan Yojana (RKVY), National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
For Mains: 1. Examine the causes of soil degradation in India and the conservation methods needed to halt the degradation process.
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Source: The Hindu
