Foreword ix
André MARIOTTI
Part 1. Local and Global 1
Chapter 1. Effective Management of Agricultural Soils: A Challenge for Society 3
Cécile CLAVEIROLE and Agnès COURTOUX
1.1. Introduction 3
1.2. Findings and issues 4
1.2.1. Ecosystem services created by the soil 4
1.2.2. The current major issues 5
1.3. Recommendations of the French Economic, Social and Environmental Council 6
1.3.1. Developing soil knowledge tools 7
1.3.2. Protecting the land and using land planning as a preservation tool 8
1.3.3. Supporting agricultural practices that promote good soil biological quality 9
1.3.4. Raising awareness about soil-related issues 11
1.4. Conclusion 12
1.5. Bibliography 12
Chapter 2. A New "Great Game" over the World's Arable Land? 13
Alain KARSENTY
2.1. Introduction 13
2.2. The dynamic compound that is "land grabbing" 15
2.2.1. The powers behind the phenomenon 15
2.2.2. Quantitative estimates revised downward 16
2.2.3. A predominance of food production partly due to oil palm 18
2.2.4. Host countries and the origin of investors 19
2.2.5. The nature of investors 21
2.2.6. Land-use changes 22
2.2.7. The consequences for agricultural structures 24
2.3. Does the grabbing model have a future? 26
2.3.1. Local resistance pushes for proposals for contract farming 26
2.3.2. Possible mutual gains? 28
2.3.3. Multilateral efforts to introduce a soft law 30
2.3.4. The role of public policies 31
2.4. Conclusion 32
2.5. Bibliography 34
Part 2. Different Forms of Sustainable Management 39
Chapter 3. The Soil: A Strange Legal Notion 41
Maylis DESROUSSEAUX
3.1. Introduction 41
3.2. The potential of law in the regulation of soil usage 44
3.2.1. The variability in the law's understanding of soil 44
3.2.2. The lack of ecological soil governance 47
3.3. The necessary evolution of the legal status of soil 49
3.3.1. The protection of soil habitats recognized by law for the recovery of biodivesity 49
3.3.2. The acknowledgment of the soil as part of our common heritag 51
3.4. Conclusion 53
3.5. Bibliography 53
Chapter 4. Where is Soil in the Design and Management of Sustainable Farming Systems? The View of an Agronomist 57
François LAURENT
4.1. Introduction 57
4.2. The soil of the agronomist: a field of diversity 58
4.3. Soil and fertility: relationships to revisit and the need for operational knowledge 59
4.4. Agroecology and global issues: emerging needs 66
4.5. Conclusion 70
4.6. Acknowledgement 70
4.7. Bibliography 71
Part 3. Territorial Approaches 75
Chapter 5. Common Governance of Soil Quality, Complex and Multi-player Dynamics 77
Didier CHRISTIN and Guillaume DHÉRISSARD
5.1. Introduction 77
5.2. Return to some territorial experiments 78
5.2.1. Presentation of three cases in France, the Netherlands and Belgium 79
5.2.2. Key teachings from the viewpoint of soil governance 83
5.3. Learning about soil management in terms of common management 84
5.3.1. Soil management, a complex and multi-player issue 84
5.3.2. The total quality of the soils 85
5.3.3. Common management 87
5.4. Conclusion 90
5.5. Bibliography 91
Chapter 6. Moving Discussions Toward Co-diagnostics: Progressive Approaches 93
Christine KING
6.1. Introduction 93
6.2. Scientists' proposals 94
6.2.1. Clarifying, objectifying and representing the organization and soil quality 94
6.2.2. Increasing knowledge and awareness of the processes involved and the provided ecosystem services 97
6.2.3. Increasing trust in models and in projections 103
6.2.4. A better policy for raising awareness and transferring knowledge 105
6.2.5. Organizing the monitoring of scientific evidence 106
6.2.6. Developing and conducting a proper monitoring system 108
6.3. The science/society discussion 109
6.3.1. More and more interactions of the subject of soil and diagnostics 109
6.3.2. Current research and the contributions of human and social sciences 116
6.4. Conclusion 119
6.5. Bibliography 120
Chapter 7. The Soil as Territorial Commons: The Point of View of a Landscaper 127
Pierre DONADIEU
7.1. Introduction 127
7.2. Territorial and landscaped commons 128
7.2.1. Territorial commons 129
7.2.2. Landscaped commons 131
7.2.3. Territorialism or landscaping? 134
7.2.4. Conclusion 137
7.3. Building territorial commons 137
7.3.1. Separating the rights of soil usage 137
7.3.2. Land use of the Morbihan Regional Nature Park: a landscape issue for local societies 138
7.3.3. Conserving the agricultural soil of the Pays de Caux: a common cause? 140
7.3.4. The Perfume River in Hü (Vietnam) 141
7.4. Conclusion 144
7.5. Bibliography 145
List of Authors 149
Index 151
1
Effective Management of Agricultural Soils: A Challenge for Society
1.1. Introduction
The French Economic, Social and Environmental Council or ESEC (Conseil économique, social et environnement - CESE), the third constitutional assembly of France, have voiced their opinions on the questions regarding society. The year 2015 was declared as the International Year of Soils by the FAO. This crucial subject, which is often overlooked by French citizens, warranted ESEC to devote a thorough approach to it, in order to identify soil-related issues and to develop an analysis of the situation and proposals for the future. Many national and international experts have been audited by members of the Agricultural Department at ESEC. The slogan, "effective management of agricultural soils, a challenge for society", has been adopted by the plenary assembly of the ESEC during its meeting on May 13 20151.
For a long time, water was considered a precious resource as it is so vital. Its usage has therefore been the subject of numerous regulations, even internationally, in an attempt to avoid conflicts of use, which in some cases has led to wars. However, despite it being the source of basic life and food, there was such a late awareness of soil and this nourishment of land has not been greatly considered. Ultimately, the nourishment of humanity depends on the health of marine and terrestrial environments. Food comes from plant cultivation or animal husbandry, as well as other products derived from fish or aquaculture. Yet, the contribution of plants is essential; they only have the ability to use solar energy to create organic matter, from carbon dioxide captured in the air, and water and minerals they absorb from the soil. Awareness regarding the finite nature of fish stocks exists, and it has led to international decisions such as the introduction of fishing quotas. Despite this, the limits of the soil's abilities are still not embedded in people's minds or policies. Processes such as erosion, loss of fertility and artificialization are still occurring on a planetary scale. This ultimately affects the soil's ability to continue producing food in sufficient quantities and qualities for an ever-growing population. In order to continue food production, which is the main purpose of agriculture, humanity must be aware of the soil's needs, and of living and biologically rich soils. The aforementioned observation should provoke us to adopt a more global approach to soil and to consider it, as well as water and air, as a common heritage of humanity, while taking into account the rights of ownership and use. This will allow us to better reflect the multiplicity of its functions and the complexity of its interactions with other environments.
1.2. Findings and issues
At this point, we will not discuss the exact definition of soil, which is discussed in volume 1 of this series, Soils as a Key Component of the Critical Zone: Functions and Services; however, we will outline the issues related to its preservation.
1.2.1. Ecosystem services created by the soil
As part of the "Millenium Ecosystem Assessment" launched in 2001 by the United Nations, the ecosystems created by the soil are grouped into four broad categories:
- - Self-sustaining services: these services make up chemical, physical and biological processes and the functioning and the maintenance of the soil itself. These include photosynthesis and the circulation of water, as well as microorganisms working to degrade and transform the soil's components. These are natural mechanisms which make the production of services offered by the soil possible. Organic matter, mineral composition and immense biodiversity are at the heart of soil quality and provide essential functions, which will largely depend on other services created by the soil.
- - Uptake and provisioning services: the soil is rich due to its fertility, and it can provide human food, materials, energy, carbon for industrial uses, and fibers and molecules generally used for pharmaceutical purposes.
- - Regulating services: the soil plays a major role in the regulation of water and superficial flow, water and stream recharge, the filtration and the purification of waters which cross them (provided that they are not polluted, as this can cause the opposite effect). Through organic matter created by the photosynthesis of plants, they store and release greenhouse gases, in particular carbon dioxide, which can significantly affect the earth's climate. Gathering carbon as an organic matter in the soil is beneficial for both the soil's fertility and for decreasing the amount of CO2 content in the atmosphere. Green soil also participates in the regulation of atmospheric humidity, and therefore of temperature, which no longer occurs in highly urbanized areas.
- - Cultural services: due to the properties of soil, historically, it has largely determined the places where humanity, when they became farmers, settled down and founded the first cities. Over time, soils molded the way of life and crafted the countryside. The nurturing mantra of "Mother Earth" has also been enshrined in many cultural beliefs and traditions, and it remains so to this day (see volume 1 of this series, Soils as a Key Component of the Critical Zone: Functions and Services, Chapter 9).
1.2.2. The current major issues
The major issues relating to agricultural soils, particularly in France, cover two complementary dimensions: the protection of the soil's fertility and the maintenance of its quality. These two aspects must allow the soil to fully play the vital roles mentioned above. These issues are not helped by the impact of climate change: the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has predicted that extreme weather conditions such as floods and heavy rain, will affect Western Europe which will no doubt weaken the soil and agricultural activity.
The continuing trend of declining areas devoting themselves to agriculture is difficult to measure, and forces the planet to make a difficult decision. Demographic growth and the political and societal choices of the last decades have contributed to increased needs in terms of housing, infrastructure, areas of economic, commercial and leisure activities, natural unspoilt areas and, of course, food. Yet, to meet this latter need, agriculture requires sufficient amounts of agricultural land. Ultimately, this means working to find a balance between different soil uses, while striving to protect natural and forest areas. There is then the question of the distribution between agricultural lands and natural and forestry areas.
At the same time, we are witnessing the emergence of a new process of land grabbing. Generally, land grabbing is carried out by companies with owners that are difficult to identify and of varying nationalities. It is a rare occurence in France, but very frequent in the more fertile areas of Africa, in some Latin American Territories and even in several countries belonging to the European Union2. The increase in such practices (whether due to competition with the farmers currently placed on the land or the increase in the price of the land) begs the question: are the agricultural practices sustainable?
The second biggest issue relates to preservation, or perhaps improvement, where necessary, of soil quality which heavily depends on the level of organic matter and the existence of rich and varied biodiversity. This aspect is extremely important as it affects the maintenance of services, notably the ecosystems created by the soil. This is to keep the soil's fertility which is essential to maintaining agricultural productivity and, to tackle the increase in food demand, to ensure that the water is purified and regulated, to reduce the risks of erosion and finally, to fight against climate change. It is also worth taking into account public health issues, the health status of food and drinking water being directly dependent on the soils they originate from.
1.3. Recommendations of the French Economic, Social and Environmental Council
ESEC, aware of official findings mentioned above and issues preventing the preservation of agricultural soils in the territory, have therefore issued four recommendations:
- - the reinforcement of knowledge tools;
- - the protection of agricultural land;
- - the preservation and improvement of the conditions of agricultural soils; and
- - awareness of soil-related issues.
Our subsequent remarks target some particular themes of these recommendations.
1.3.1. Developing soil knowledge tools
The value of soil knowledge is essential in urban planning choices, like in the orientation of agricultural land use. This knowledge can only be achieved with an accomplished and accessible soil map.
The scientific interest group, Sol (GIS Sol), was created at the end of the 1990s by the French Ministries of Agriculture and the Environment, the ADEME (French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management), the IFN/IGN (French National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information) and the INRA (French National Institute for Agricultural Research). Concerned about France's delay in inventory and soil monitoring programs, these different organizations collaborated to propose a new framework for the programs and to redefine the issues. The latter issue...
