Soil Atlas 2024

Overuse of artificial fertiliser is bad for soils and, in the case of nitrogen fertilisers, for the climate as well. Moreover, pesticides deplete the soil of beneficial organisms. Yet these products earn big money for big companies, which influence governments, often blocking policy changes needed to protect people and the environment.

Synthetic fertilisers harm the climate, but industrial farming relies heavily on them. Additionally, higher fertiliser prices have pushed up prices for food commodities. African countries, where food crises intersect with debt crises, are hit especially hard.

Phosphorus is bioessential, meaning that all living organisms require it. Yet, despite its presence in soils, it is a relatively rare element on Earth and is not always found in a form that plants can absorb. The fertiliser industry produces easily soluble phosphorus but depends on a finite, non-substitutable resource: phosphate rock.

The production of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser using renewable energy instead of fossil fuels can reduce greenhouse gas emissions upstream. But it does not solve the problems associated with excessive use of synthetic fertilisers, such as diminished soil health, biodiversity loss, on-field greenhouse gas emissions, nitrate pollution, and overdependency on external inputs. 

Land has been heralded as a crisis-proof investment around the world. However, these deals often make money for the wealthy few, while pushing local people off their land and into poverty. Countries like Germany, Singapore, and the United States are complicit in such land grabs.

The phenomenon of large companies and investors buying up vast tracts of arable land in the Global South has long been seen as a problem. In Germany, too, this kind of land grabbing is on the rise, with small and medium-sized farms pushed out. A reorientation that prioritises the common good is needed.

Soil plays a major role in protecting the environment. It serves as carbon reservoirs, the plots into which trees are planted, and a steward for producing climate-neutral fuels. But land-intensive climate action can give rise to conflicts and erode people’s rights. Even so, there is yet to be a resolution for this mounting global challenge in sight.

The world’s soils store more carbon than its forests, and this storage capacity is increasingly discussed as a contributor to climate protection. Tradable carbon credits were designed to incentivise the build-up or retention of carbon in the soil. However, they may in fact undermine efforts to reduce emissions.

Equitable access to land and fertile soil is fundamental to realising human rights, such as the right to food. Although numerous United Nations declarations on land rights have been ratified by national governments, deadly land conflicts persist throughout the world.

Secure land access is essential for long-term soil protection because it enables land users to implement practices that enhance soil health and maintain its productivity over time. However, in many African countries, women’s land rights remain precarious, creating significant barriers to investing in sustainable soil management.