Geological and Environmental Sustainability

Soil and Ecosystem Services

Soil is the foundation of terrestrial ecosystems and therefore the majority of ecosystem services needed for human survival arise from soil. By definition, ecosystem services benefit for human development and represent nature’s capital. for instance, the value of soil microbial metabolic pathways in removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, abating nutrients, eradicating pathogens and degrading organic pollutants has been estimated to be double that of the gross annual product.

The monetary valuation of those services, demanded by many governments and international agencies, is usually depicted as a necessary condition for the preservation of the natural capital that soils represent.