All publications and documents

The first volume of the International Yearbook of Soil Law and Policy includes an important discussion on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals that are the basis for the post-2015 development agenda up to the year 2030; the Yearbook focuses in particular on Goal 15, which includes achieving a “land degradation-neutral world.” It also provides a comprehensive and highly…

Efforts to establish Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) as a global objective in the fight against land degradation culminated in 2015 when LDN became part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (target 15.3). Following swiftly, the twelfth session Conference of the Parties (COP 12) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) decided to integrate LDN into the Convention…

In low-nutrient environments with few vascular plant symbiotic N fixers, biocrusts play an important role in ecosystem N cycling. A large number of studies across a wide range of biomes clearly confirm that not only the presence of biocrusts but biocrust community composition strongly influences N-fixation activity, with N fixation increasing with level of development (cyanobacterial-lichen…

This volume summarizes our current understanding of biological soil crusts (biocrusts), which are omnipresent in dryland regions. Since they cover the soil surface, they influence, or even control, all surface exchange processes. Being one of the oldest terrestrial communities, biocrusts comprise a high diversity of cyanobacteria, algae, lichens and bryophytes together with uncounted bacteria,…

Se evaluó el efecto de dos tipos de la labranza primaria, uno con multiarado (LM) y el otro con arado de discos (LAD), sobre el flujo energético y la dinámica del dióxido de carbono (CO2) de la capa superior del suelo. Las parcelas experimentales se ubicaron en el Rancho “Los Ángeles”, Municipio de Saltillo, Coahuila, México (25º 6.650’ N y 100º 59.413’ O), donde el clima es del tipo BWhw(x’)(e)…

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and related 169 Targets, adopted by the United Na-tions in September 2015, aim to end poverty, protect the planet, and to ensure prosperity for all. Due to their various functions, land and soil are addressed by several SDGs and Targets. In particular, Tar-get 2.4 "By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural…