Soils and ecosystem services

Abstract

Soil’s ecosystem services (ESs), provisions of tangible goods and intangible environments and processes, are governed by its capital endowment (inherent characteristics such as clay content) and capacity to transform managerial inputs into productivity. Thus, soil quality refers to its capacity to provide and sustain a range of ESs and functions of interest to human and for maintenance of ecosystem health. Provisions of these services and functions also depend on land use (e.g., arable, pastoral, silvicultural, urban, recreational, spiritual). Because of strong interactivity, management to enhance some ESs can jeopardize others or lead to some adverse degradation processes (e.g., accelerated erosion, water pollution, decline of biodiversity). Similarly, production of biofuels can exacerbate competition with food production for land, water, energy, and nutrients. The abrupt climate change (ACC), as an example of human footprint caused by the use of natural resources, also impacts ESs and the underlying processes. Developing mechanisms and identifying/implementing policies for payments to land managers for enhancing ESs such as carbon (C) sequestration can promote adoption of best management practices (BMPs) and facilitate restoration of degraded soils and ecosystems. Recarbonization of the biosphere and sequestration of soil organic carbon (SOC) are important strategies to enhancing and sustaining ESs and functions of natural and managed ecosystems.