On 10 April 2024, the European Parliament approved at first reading the fragile proposal for a directive on soil health monitoring (Soil Monitoring Law). (1) A giant leap backwards compared to the previous resolutions of the European Parliament and the Soil Protection Strategy that the European Commission presented in 2021 (2,3).
1) European soils, widespread degradation
60-70% of European soils is in a state of degradation, due to urbanization and waterproofing (i.e. covering with artificial waterproof materials, such as concrete or asphalt), as well as intensive agricultural systems. Indeed, 90% of agricultural soils are in degraded conditions, which compromise their productivity.
Degraded soils can no longer provide ecosystem services vital to agriculture, humans and the environment. That is, providing safe and nutritious food, purifying water, storing carbon, providing habitat for biodiversity, reducing the impacts of extreme weather events.
Loss of ecosystem services is estimated to cost around 50 billion euros/year, at a European level. (4)
2) Soil health, words in the wind
The European Union has undertaken various commitments to protect the health of the soil. Last but not least, the Sustainable Development Goals in the UN Agenda 2030 which include zero hunger (SDG 2), clean water (SDG 6), climate action (SDG 13), life on land (SDG 15).
The Biodiversity strategy had also foreseen the intensification of efforts to reduce soil erosion, protect its fertility and increase organic substance. Only to remain without any implementation.
From words to deeds, the Soil Strategy is degraded into a simple monitoring plan, approved at first reading in the last plenary session of Parliament with a weak majority (336 votes in favour, 242 against and 36 abstentions). Without any obligation for Member States to achieve the 2050 or intermediate objectives.
3) Monitoring
Monitoring soil health should be achieved by Member States after dividing the territory into a minimum number of soil districts, based on climatic conditions, land use or land cover (Article 4). Designating, for each district, a competent authority.
The directive also defines some soil descriptors, to allow data comparison. These descriptors are listed in Annex I of the Directive and cover health, employment and soil contamination. Member States should be able to establish additional descriptors by informing the Commission (Article 7).
4) Measurements
Member States have the task of determining the sampling points following the indications contained in Annex II, part A of the directive scheme. Then carry out the sampling and measurements of the ‘descriptors’.
The first measurements should be carried out within 4 years of the entry into force of the directive. To be repeated every 5 years (article 8).
The land who meets the criteria established in Annex I, parts A and B, may be considered ‘healthy’. Conversely, if not even one of these criteria is met, the soil will be considered ‘unhealthy’ (article 9).
5) Measures for sustainable soil management
Within 4 years from the entry into force of the text, Member States undertake to adopt at least the measures listed in Article 10 of the directive. That means:
- define both regeneration practices and sustainable land management practices, as well as those that negatively affect soil health and must therefore be prohibited
- promote awareness of the long-term benefits of sustainable land management, as well as research and implementation of holistic land management concepts
- make available a mapping of the funding available to implement sustainable soil management.
6) Contaminated sites
Europe takes a step backwards, once again, in leaving the task of defining the ‘unacceptable risk to human health and the environment’ to Member States. And so, within 4 years of the entry into force of the directive:
– Member States establish a risk-based approach to identify contaminated sites and manage them, so as to keep the risks to human and environmental health of the sites ‘at acceptable levels’
– the authorities responsible for the individual sites adopt the appropriate measures, among those indicated in Annex V to the directive, to bring the aforementioned risks to acceptable levels.
7) To the next legislature
The text approved by Parliament will go to the Council for a vote, scheduled for June. To return to the new European Parliament, following the upcoming elections. The disappointment of civil society is strong, and so should be that of farmers who suffer from land degradation.
‘A directive which will oblige EU countries to first monitor, and then evaluate, the health status of all soils on their territory; but much weakened compared to the objectives it had declared in the soil strategy for 2030. Two years ago, the EU Commission actually talked about presenting a Soil Health Law which, however, already upon its publication, had been downsized into a Soil Monitoring Law. So a directive that develops a common soil monitoring framework is very welcome, but much more needs to be done in an attempt to implement any feasible measure to effectively improve soil health‘. (Damiano Di Simine, Legambiente, soil manager). (5)
8) Soil integrity and health, what are the prospects?
The integrity of the soils is crucial for agriculture and the European population, and continues to be threatened by policies that favor financial interests, where:
- neither the European Union nor Italy have so far established a mandatory ban on the consumption of land, which continues to be devoured for new buildings and also to install wind and photovoltaic systems (6)
- the Commission and the European Parliament, in the legislature now at the end, have failed to follow up on initiatives for soil restoration, biodiversity and resilience in agriculture.(7)
Dario Dongo – candidate with the #PaceTerraDignità movement in the elections to be held in Italy on 8-9 June 2024 – aspires to continue also in the European Parliament the battles waged for many years on these and other issues, on the basis of program already shared.
Dario Dongo and Alessandra Mei
Footnotes
(1) European Parliament. European Parliament legislative resolution of 10 April 2024 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Soil Monitoring and Resilience (Soil Monitoring Law) https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2024-0204_EN.html
(2) Dario Dongo, Alessandra Mei. Soil protection, the European Parliament calls for binding rules. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 25.4.21
(3) Dario Dongo. Soil protection, 2030 strategy. ABC. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6.12.21
(4) Dario Dongo, Gabriele Sapienza. Italy, land consumption and ecosystem services. ISPRA report. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 8.11.23
(5) Legambiente. EU Parliament gives green light to soil directive (Soil Monitoring Law). 11.4.24 https://www.legambiente.it/comunicati-stampa/via-libera-del-parlamento-ue-a-direttiva-sul-suolo-soil-monitoring-law/
(6) Dario Dongo. Land robbery, ‘agri-solar parks’ and wind turbines. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 3.4.24
(7) See paragraph 6 of the previous article by Gabriele Sapienza, Dario Dongo. Microbial biodiversity of soils in Europe, analyzes and perspectives. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6.11.23
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Graduated in Law from the University of Bologna, she attended the Master in Food Law at the same University. You participate in the WIISE srl benefit team by dedicating yourself to European and international research and innovation projects.
