soil biodiversity News
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Healthy soils for a healthy planet
Healthy soils are vital in a world challenged by climate change. We need to decide how best to use land to provide food for a growing population and how it can be used to mitigate the effects of manmade emissions. The quality of soil must be maintained or restored if it is to provide its essential services: cycling nutrients, water and air, supporting biodiversity and acting as a substantial ...
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High levels of glyphosate in agricultural soil: ‘Extension of approval not prudent.’
There has been a great deal of discussion about the use and extension of the approval of use of glyphosate as a herbicide. Glyphosate is the most used herbicide in Europe. In 2016 the approval by the European Commission for the use of this agent expired. However, an extension of approval of use is currently being discussed. One of the conditions of this is that the agent cannot have a negative ...
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Sustainable Agriculture to Promote Biodiversity
• Biodiversity affects key ecosystem services, such as the primary production of food for humans and the rest of nature, plus the recycling of nutrients and water. • One hectare of land contains a lot of biodiversity in the soil – equivalent to the weight of one cow of bacteria, two sheep of protozoa, and four rabbits of soil animals such as earthworms. The INSPIA* project is ...
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Damaging Human Impact on the Land ‘Unsustainable’
A new UN report examining how land resources such as water, soil and biodiversity are being managed around the world has found that human activity is damaging and degrading the earth in an unsustainable way. The second edition of the Global Land Outlook – which has taken five years to compile – indicates that up to 40 per cent of terrain worldwide has already been devalued, ...
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Using nature`s resources to store carbon
The ability of the Earth's living systems to store carbon could play a vital role in the mitigation of climate change. A new report suggests that, in coming decades, safeguarding and restoring carbon in ecosystems has the potential to prevent well over 50 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon entering the atmosphere. Last year the EU launched its Climate Action and Renewable Energy package to set a target ...
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Significant progress made in first year of The Good Growth Plan
Syngenta has published the first update on progress towards meeting the six ambitious commitments in The Good Growth Plan, which was launched in 2013 to support the future sustainability of agriculture and rural communities. Syngenta established a global network of over 3,500 reference and benchmark farms in 2014. Around 860 reference farms are using tailored protocols to raise productivity ...
By Syngenta
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Private investment in trees could replenish Africa`s land
Africa's severe land degradation could be reversed by private sector investment in tree-based restoration technologies, a meeting heard. Poor agricultural practices and deforestation are some of the causes of land degradation, which has led to a massive loss of biodiversity on the continent, experts said at the international investment forum Mobilising Private Investment in Trees and Landscaping ...
By SciDev.Net
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Use of residues from agriculture and forestry as energy source improves food security
The sustainability of growing crops for use as energy sources has been disputed for many years. A potentially attractive alternative is to use waste and residues from agricultural and forestry. However, using waste and other residues may have an impact on land use, biodiversity and food security. The additional sources of income from the sale of waste and other residues could prompt an increase ...
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Record-breaking $17.3 billion in crop losses last year; significant portion potentially avoidable
Report shows county-by-county analysis of impacts in the ten states with highest crop insurance losses due to extreme weather: Extreme weather forced the Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) to pay out a record-breaking $17.3 billion in crop losses last year, much of which could have been prevented using water-smart strategies, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. Payments made ...
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Let`s add climate knowledge to agroforestry plans
We need to know more about how smallholder agroforestry can help farmers adapt to climate change, write James Roshetko and Rodel Lasco. Much is known about agroforestry — the mixing of tree species with crops and livestock to enrich farmers' livelihoods. But less is known about how it can help farmers adapt to climate change. This gap in our knowledge is increasingly worrisome. With ...
By SciDev.Net
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