· 2 min read
illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece here in The Guardian or enjoy below
🗞️ Driving the news: The European Commission has recently proposed the first-ever soil law in Europe
• The new law asks countries to monitor soil health, fertilizer use, and soil erosion
• It aims to rejuvenate degraded soils allowing them to absorb carbon again at optimal levels, however, not setting specific improvement goals for each country
🔭 The context: Land use is the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions after fossil fuels and contributes significantly to biodiversity loss
• This proposal comes at a time when more than 60% of EU soils are deemed unhealthy
🌍 Why does it matter for the planet: Restoring soils could help to limit global heating to within 1.5°C, as suggested by recent research
• Healthy soils can better withstand droughts and floods, and play a critical role in carbon sequestration
⏭️ What’s next: The European agri-food industry believes the law must go further to effectively address soil health deterioration
• The law now relies on EU member states and the European Parliament to possibly increase its scope and impact
💬 One quote: "If our soils continue to degrade, the biggest risk is to our food security and farmers. Basically, their business model is wiped out. I can hardly imagine how we could do agriculture without fertile soils." (Virginijus Sinkevičius, EU environment commissioner)
📈 One stat: "More than 60% of the EU’s soils are considered to be in an unhealthy state." (Virginijus Sinkevičius, EU environment commissioner)
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