Why Soil Needs Governance

Soil Is Valuable – But Also Vulnerable 

Soils form slowly, often over centuries or millennia, yet they can degrade within years or even months under unsustainable land use and poor management practices. The European Environment Agency (EEA) estimates that a significant proportion of European soils are in poor condition, with implications for food production, water regulation, climate mitigation, and biodiversity conservation (EEA, 2023). At the global scale, the FAO and the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils estimate that a substantial share of the world’s soils are already degraded due to unsustainable land use, intensive agriculture, deforestation, urbanisation, and pollution (FAO & ITPS, 2015; FAO, 2021). 

© Proportion of land likely affected by one or more soil degradation processes or by soil sealing in the EU, in Europe's Environment and Climate for resilience, prosperity and sustainability. European Environment Agency (2025)

Because soil supports many ecosystem services, its degradation affects human well-being directly and indirectly. Soil degradation reduces agricultural productivity, increases flood risks, weakens climate regulation, and reduces resilience to climate extremes, highlighting the need for stronger soil governance and sustainable land management policies (Hannam, 2021). 

Unlike air or water, soil degradation is often less visible. It happens gradually, beneath our feet. This relative invisibility has historically contributed to weaker and more fragmented protection frameworks compared to other environmental systems.