Rethinking Global Soil Degradation : Drivers, Impacts, and Solutions
(2025) In Reviews of Geophysics 63(4).- Abstract
The increasing threat of soil degradation presents significant challenges to soil health, especially within agroecosystems that are vital for food security, climate regulation, and economic stability. This growing concern arises from intricate interactions between land use practices and climatic conditions, which, if not addressed, could jeopardize sustainable development and environmental resilience. This review offers a comprehensive examination of soil degradation, including its definitions, global prevalence, underlying mechanisms, and methods of measurement. It underscores the connections between soil degradation and land use, with a focus on socio-economic consequences. Current assessment methods frequently depend on insufficient... (More)
The increasing threat of soil degradation presents significant challenges to soil health, especially within agroecosystems that are vital for food security, climate regulation, and economic stability. This growing concern arises from intricate interactions between land use practices and climatic conditions, which, if not addressed, could jeopardize sustainable development and environmental resilience. This review offers a comprehensive examination of soil degradation, including its definitions, global prevalence, underlying mechanisms, and methods of measurement. It underscores the connections between soil degradation and land use, with a focus on socio-economic consequences. Current assessment methods frequently depend on insufficient data, concentrate on singular factors, and utilize arbitrary thresholds, potentially resulting in misclassification and misguided decisions. We analyze these shortcomings and investigate emerging methodologies that provide scalable and objective evaluations, offering a more accurate representation of soil vulnerability. Additionally, the review assesses both physical and biological indicators, as well as the potential of technologies such as remote sensing, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics for enhanced monitoring and forecasting. Key factors driving soil degradation, including unsustainable agricultural practices, deforestation, industrial activities, and extreme climate events, are thoroughly examined. The review emphasizes the importance of healthy soils in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly concerning food and water security, ecosystem health, poverty alleviation, and climate action. It suggests future research directions that prioritize standardized metrics, interdisciplinary collaboration, and predictive modeling to facilitate more integrated and effective management of soil degradation in the context of global environmental changes.
(Less)
- author
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-12
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- soil degradation, soil health, soil science
- in
- Reviews of Geophysics
- volume
- 63
- issue
- 4
- article number
- e2025RG000883
- publisher
- John Wiley & Sons Inc.
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105023831469
- ISSN
- 8755-1209
- DOI
- 10.1029/2025RG000883
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 1f2343f6-931f-4c58-8882-4461d46fefe9
- date added to LUP
- 2026-01-12 13:57:51
- date last changed
- 2026-01-12 14:00:59
@article{1f2343f6-931f-4c58-8882-4461d46fefe9,
abstract = {{<p>The increasing threat of soil degradation presents significant challenges to soil health, especially within agroecosystems that are vital for food security, climate regulation, and economic stability. This growing concern arises from intricate interactions between land use practices and climatic conditions, which, if not addressed, could jeopardize sustainable development and environmental resilience. This review offers a comprehensive examination of soil degradation, including its definitions, global prevalence, underlying mechanisms, and methods of measurement. It underscores the connections between soil degradation and land use, with a focus on socio-economic consequences. Current assessment methods frequently depend on insufficient data, concentrate on singular factors, and utilize arbitrary thresholds, potentially resulting in misclassification and misguided decisions. We analyze these shortcomings and investigate emerging methodologies that provide scalable and objective evaluations, offering a more accurate representation of soil vulnerability. Additionally, the review assesses both physical and biological indicators, as well as the potential of technologies such as remote sensing, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics for enhanced monitoring and forecasting. Key factors driving soil degradation, including unsustainable agricultural practices, deforestation, industrial activities, and extreme climate events, are thoroughly examined. The review emphasizes the importance of healthy soils in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly concerning food and water security, ecosystem health, poverty alleviation, and climate action. It suggests future research directions that prioritize standardized metrics, interdisciplinary collaboration, and predictive modeling to facilitate more integrated and effective management of soil degradation in the context of global environmental changes.</p>}},
author = {{Shokri, Nima and Robinson, David A. and Afshar, Mehdi and Alewell, Christine and Aminzadeh, Milad and Arthur, Emmanuel and Broothaerts, Nils and Campbell, Grant A. and Eklund, Lina and Gupta, Surya and Harper, Richard and Hassani, Amirhossein and Hohenegger, Cathy and Keller, Thomas and Kiener, Maximilian and Lebron, Inma and Madani, Kaveh and Marwala, Tshilidzi and Matthews, Francis and Moldrup, Per and Nemes, Attila and Panagos, Panos and Prăvălie, Remus and Rillig, Matthias C. and Saggau, Philipp and Shokri-Kuehni, Salome M.S. and Smith, Pete and Thomas, Amy and Wollesen de Jonge, Lis and Or, Dani}},
issn = {{8755-1209}},
keywords = {{soil degradation; soil health; soil science}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{4}},
publisher = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
series = {{Reviews of Geophysics}},
title = {{Rethinking Global Soil Degradation : Drivers, Impacts, and Solutions}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2025RG000883}},
doi = {{10.1029/2025RG000883}},
volume = {{63}},
year = {{2025}},
}