Technical development to assess soil health using soil health index in Indonesia

Abstract

In the era of disruption, agriculture 4.0, industry 4.0 and sustainable development, accurate and practical data of natural resources is needed, particularly data on soil health. Data about soil health is not only related to and needed for agriculture-related to securing agriculture production but is also needed for other fields that use soil and maintain health and preserve the environment. Ironically, in Indonesia, there are no tools that have been developed and used extensively and standardized to assess soil health. Thus the development of tools to assess soil health is an urgent need in Indonesia. Assessing or measuring soil health is not as easy as assessing air and water quality. A variation on the function of soil causes difficulties in compiling a soil health assessment that can measure to which extent the soil can fulfill all of its dedicated functions. In order to be able to be used extensively, the standard of soil health assessment must be quite easy and practical, affordable in terms of financing or is not expensive, and selected soil parameters can be analyzed by many land and water laboratories throughout Indonesia. The technique developed to assess or measure soil health in Indonesia proposed by the author is to use soil health index by using a minimum data set consisting of 13 (thirteen) main parameters of soil equipped with the function or role of each parameter along with its weighting coefficient and how to assess each parameter and calculate the total health score of the soil studied. Furthermore, the total health score of the soil then classified into 5 levels of soil health, varying from very well to very poor levels.