By Bárbara Pinho
More than half of Europe's soils are degraded. Researchers are showing that restoring soil through better farming makes both ecological and financial sense.
Soils feed us, filter our water and support most of the food chain on Earth. But they are also among Europe's most neglected resources—quietly degrading beneath our feet while we look elsewhere.
Andrés Rodríguez Seijo from the University of Vigo in Spain is one of the researchers working to change that. He first noticed how little attention soil receives while working on microplastics, at a time when the issue was just beginning to gain traction.
"Everyone talked about microplastics at sea, but ignored the fact that, before they get there, they're on land, polluting our soils," he said.
Soils in trouble
European soils are in bad shape. They contain far too much nitrogen, largely due to the overuse of fertilizers, and are heavily eroded and polluted. More than 60% are currently classified as unhealthy, and climate change is set to make matters worse.
The bill for this damage is already steep. Soil degradation across Europe is estimated to cost around €50 billion every year, according to EU estimates.
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