Soil health – parliamentary inquiry into an essential of life
MPs are looking in detail into the health of soil - an essential element of life.
Meeting details
At 2:00pm: Private discussion
Inquiry
Soil Health
At 2:30pm: Oral evidence
Inquiry
Soil Health
Head for Soils and Land Use at UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
Soil and stones project lead at Society for the Environment
President at British Society of Soil Science
At 3:30pm: Oral evidence
Inquiry
Soil Health
Director at Sustainable Soils Alliance
Head of UK at ClientEarth
Agricultural Lead at CPRE - The Countryside Charity
The Committee holds it first evidence session in its Soil Health inquiry, with witnesses from the academic and environmental sectors.
Soil contains the organic and non-organic materials in which plants grow. But its quality can diminish, often because of human activity. Degradation of the quality of soil can have implications for some of its many properties that are valuable for biodiversity. Degradation can also affect agricultural productivity and soil’s ability to retain water, carbon or nutrients.
Areas of questioning at the session could include:
- the current state of the over 700 types of soil in the UK
- what we know about soil health trends
- the current regulation of soils
- the government’s strategy and targets for improving soil health