Soil as natural capital: agricultural production,

soil fertility and farmers economy

European Parliament, Brussels 23/11/2011

Michael Hamell

The demands we put on land

Feeding 9-10 billion by 2050

Delivery of biofuels/bio-energy

Contributing to the bio-economy

Providing more space for urban and infrastructure

How much more productivity/how much more land do we need?Remember the Mark Twain adage – take care!

Realities on resources related to land

Climate is a key resource – the graph of CO2 emissions globally is still up.

Biodiversity/ecosystems in peril. We didn’t reach the 2010 target to halt the decline: can we reach the 2020 global and EU targets? – not without real funding

Water stressed areas growing around the world. Reluctance in some EU MS to reach WFD RBMPs. Whiffs of derogations in the air.

Phosphorus a growing challenge on sustainability; supply, availability, contaminants, contribution to production and eutrophication.

Overall – not a pretty picture!

The world and EU soil scene is not encouraging

Desertification at 50000 km2 annually

Desertification affecting 1.5 billion people

Global loss of topsoil 24 billion tonnes annually

Desertification costing 40 billion dollars in lost productivity.

UNCCD is poor man’s convention – none of the fanfare of UNFCCC or UNCBD. Strange when land and soil are our most vital assets! Some movement now via FAO/global soil partnership to greater care.

Gloomy expectations regarding our capacity to feed ourselves in 2100

Based on climate change, weather patterns, water, land availability some forecasts suggest only +/- 3 billion people can be fed! Time to take care!!

Arable land per person on planet 4.3 ha in 1960, 1.8 by 2020

By 2050 it will be about 1ha and every hectare will be important!

Time for greater care

Time for greater care in EU especially as we import equivalent of 25Mha of arable land production annually.

Four strands to thematic strategy on soil: Awareness – good progress

Research – good progress

Integration – CAP, industrial installations directive, regional policy and state aids

Legislation – EP Ok; Council not yet

Ostrich type approach will not solve problems and subsidiarity/soil doesn’t move/has not done so!

Progress on CAP

Progress in CAP very solid but CAP can’t protect agricultural land from landtake. Soil Directive requires a limitation

approach on soil sealing. CAP is silent (correctly) on contaminated sites but directive drives identification and

clean up and therefore better planning – saving land for agriculture

CAP does not seek direct identification of problem areas for erosion and SOM decline; Directive does so helping better targeting of CAP funds

CAP is giving some protection on carbon rich soils and wetlands now very welcome but the SFD would give greater scope for protection as much such land is not within CAP remit.

However, it is not just CAP that has a role in integration. Other existing legislation can also help (notably nitrates/habitats/WFD)

CONCLUSIONCONCLUSION: On soil protection we make progress including/especially via CAP but we need

to speed up pace – we need soil legislation to do this.