Soil Projects
This page presents an overview on the progress and the achievements of a number of projects:
- (Sep 2008) Completed Projects: A series of Soil Projects which have been completed. AquaTrain(AquaTRAIN Marie Curie Research Training Network), DanubeSIS, ECALP (Ecopedological Map of the Alps), ESVA(Soil Visual Assessment) , Groundwater Resources, INSEA (Integrated Sink Enhancement Assessment), SINFO(Mars Crop Yield Forecasting System), SOTER(Soil Terrain Database)
- (Nov 2010) Biochar: Biochar is char made from biomass, e.g. crop residues, green waste, wood chippings, chicken manure, etc. Biochar is listed here as a separate Soil project on account of its geoengineering status and its cross-cutting nature, i.e. it is relevant to all the Soil Threats. The JRC plays two main roles in the biochar issue: a) independent and objective reviewer of relevant scientific evidence b) active communicator and facilitator in the international scientific discourse .
- (Sep 2008) DIGISOIL: The multidisciplinary DIGISOIL consortium intends to integrate and improve in situ and proximal measurement technologies for the assessment of soil properties and soil degradation indicators, going from the sensing technologies to their integration and their application in (digital) soil mapping (DSM).
- (Nov 2007) Digital Soil Mapping (DSM): is the main exploratory research thematic of the SOIL Action. Digital Soil Mapping is the creation and the population of a geographically referenced soil databases generated at a given resolution by using field and laboratory observation methods coupled with environmental data through quantitative relationships.
(Mar 2011) EcoFINDERS: (Ecological Function and Biodiversity Indicators in European Soils) project will result in increasing our knowledge of soil biodiversity and its role in ecosystem services across different soils, climate types and land uses(scientific level); the standardization of methods and operating procedures for characterizing soil biodiversity and functioning, and the development of bioindicators(technological level); the assessment of the added value brought by cost-effective bioindicators, and of cost effectiveness of alternative ecosystem service maintenance policies (economic level). - (Apr 2009) ENVASSO: succeeded in reviewing existing soil inventories, monitoring programmes, soil indicators and criteria that could serve as a base for a soil monitoring system for Europe. Procedures and protocols appropriate for inclusion in a European soil monitoring system were defined and fully documented and 22 of these procedures were evaluated in 28 Pilot Areas. In conclusion, an outline European Soil Monitoring System, comprising a network of geo-referenced sites at which a qualified sampling process is or could be conducted, is presented.
- (Oct 2008) eSOTER: As the European contribution to a Global Soil Observing System (part of GEO), it will deliver a web-based regional pilot platform with data, methodology, and applications, using remote sensing to validate, augment and extend existing data for a global soil and terrain database
- (Oct 2008) Geoland 2: Evaluate the utility of the Core Mapping Services(CMS) for the supply of EO-based indicators assessing in Europe the impact of agriculture on the environment and the effectiveness of agri-environmental measures.
- (Oct 2008) iSOIL: Development and improvement of technologies for data collection in (digital) soil mapping; High-resolution soil property maps are one major prerequisite for the specific protection of soil functions and restoration of degraded soils as well as sustainable land use, water and environmental management.
- (Apr 2009) LUCAS: During the 2009 survey, soil samples will be collected from more than 22,000 LUCAS point locations. These samples, weighing around 11 tonnes in total, will be sent to the JRC and stored in the European Soil Archive Facility. The samples will then be analysed to assess key parameters (e.g. texture, organic matter content, pH, heavy metals) in order to assess the state of the soil across Europe.
- MEUSIS:
"Multiscale EUropean Soil Information System". Efforts are conducted
to establish an efficient workflow for updating and maintaining grid based
thematic layers with highly detailed information, more particularly in a
participatory approach, involving bottom-up transfer of spatial information
from local to global level.
- (Jan 2009) Landform Classification: Relief analysis is a tool to analyse a landscape based on a Digital Elevation Model (DEM). The landform classification following Meybeck et al. (2001) presents relief classes, which are calculated based on the relief roughness. The landform classification following Iwahashi and Pike ( 2007) present relief classes which are classified using an unsupervised nested-means algorithms and a three part geometric signature.
- (Dec 2008) OSACA: There is a movement in soil science away from qualitative soil classification toward a quantitative approach based on measurement of soil characteristics. OSACA is a software tool designed to help the researcher in soil science perform soil classification on the basis of the clustering of numerical characterisitics of soil samples. Quantitative grouping of soil layer descriptions into profile classes has not advanced much since the 1960s.
- (Mar 2008) Ramsoil: RAMSOIL: Risk Assessment Methodologies for SOIL threats.
- (Jun 2010) Renewable Energy Directive (support): Available Thematic Data Layers for Commission Decision of [11 June 2010] on guidelines for the calculation of land carbon stocks for the purpose of Annex V to Directive 2009/28/EC. Moreover, we make available Spatial Layers for Estimating GHG Emissions from Indirect Land Use Changes(ILUC) due to the Production of Biofuels.
- (Jan 2010) SafeLand: Living with landslide risk in Europe: Assessment, effects of global change and risk management strategies. The aim of SafeLand is to provide a harmonised framework and methodology for landslide risk assessment and management in Europe's regions and to evaluate landslide risk pattern changes due to global change.
- (Oct 2007) SoCo: Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation. The European Parliament has been requested to the European Commission to carry on a study on Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation (SoCo project).
- (Jan 2010) SoilTrec: Soil Transformations in European Catchments. The aims of SoilTrEC are to address the priority research areas identified in the EU Soil Thematic Strategy and to provide leadership for a global network of Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs) committed to soils research.
- (Dec 2007) Soil Images Catalogue (SIC): The Joint Research Centre, IES, SOIL Action in the in collaboration with Otto Spaargaren presents the Soil Image Catalogue. In this Catalogue a number of Soil Images are presented (Metadata also included) and they are free for Download.
- SRTM Mirror: SRTM data have been processed by the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) to create a seamless void filled Digital Elevation Model, which is especially important for Digital Soil Mapping, Hydrology and other applications. Data are a mirror from CIAT distribution servers.
- (Feb 2012) Upsoil: The project Sustainable Soil Upgrading by Developing Cost effective,
Biogeochemical Remediation Approaches (project acronym UPSOIL) is a Collaborative Project carried out under the 7th Framework programme, Theme 6 “Environment (including climate Change)” by an international consortium composed of research institutions and SMEs from the remediation sector. Find attached the Press Release, A promising breakthrough in soil remediation - the UPSOIL project findings (Dec 2011) and the latest Newsletter (Dec 2011).
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Completed Projects