Assessing soil degradation in northern Eurasia

Abstract

Soil degradation in Northern Eurasia was given much less attention than hotspots in tropics. Our review of the maps showed that the arable lands of the region were impacted by degradation. We intended to compare soil degradation assessments for the region, to outline the gaps in the studies and to propose ways forward in the soil degradation studies. The organization of monitoring of the state of land and soil is needed for maintaining soil productivity and supporting soil ecosystem services. The regular surveys in Russia do not always adequately address salinization, erosion and soil contamination. Both the status and the rate of soil degradation should be assessed on the basis of combined remote sensing and field surveys.