The University of Helsinki has secured €10 million from the Novo Nordisk Foundation to lead a Nordic research project exploring how biodiversity influences soil health, productivity and resilience.
The study will investigate how soil diversity shapes soil health in different climatic and usage environments, combining field research, experimental research and modern modelling to create a ‘multidimensional view’ of soil functionality.
‘Poorly understood’
“Healthy soil supports food production, biodiversity and climate regulation, but the mechanisms underlying its functioning are poorly understood,” commented project leader Professor Anna-Liisa Laine from the University of Helsinki.
“The project aims to provide a scientific basis and practical tools for maintaining and restoring healthy soils in a changing world.”
The multi-year initiative will investigate how the diversity of plants, soil microbes and invertebrates affects the ability of soils to support food production, store carbon, regulate water and withstand environmental disturbances – as the researchers noted, ‘soil health is not a single property, but a set of interconnected functions’.
“For example, soil rich in carbon may lack the nutrients needed by plants, and soil rich in nutrients that promote rapid plant growth may be sensitive to drought or compaction,” added Professor Jussi Heinonsalo from the University of Helsinki. “How different soil functions support or limit each other depends strongly on factors such as biodiversity, climate and farming practices.”
The study follows on from the launch of the EU Soil Health and Monitoring Directive, which came into force in earlier this year, aiming to improve the state of soils across the EU.
Sampling and testing programme
The study will see the implementation of a common sampling and testing programme across Finland, Sweden and Denmark to identify which ecological mechanisms regulate soil health and distinguish them from local variation.
Researchers will also use machine learning and advanced statistical models to integrate biodiversity data with multiple measures of soil function.
“Our goal is to produce the most comprehensive and biologically based predictive model of soil health to date,” commented Professor Jarno Vanhatalo from the University of Helsinki. “It will help develop climate-resilient land use and farming strategies as well as reliable soil health monitoring systems.” Read more here.
