According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, about 83% of the world's food comes from the land, while about 17% comes from aquatic sources. Since this obvious but crucial link between humans and soil, soil monitoring is paramount for human health. Soil mapping and soil degradation are crucial topics in the scientific and policy agenda in the European Union, as they have significant impacts on ecosystem services, biodiversity, and human well-being. Several sessions and contributions at EUROSOIL2025 highlights the importance of advancing soil mapping techniques, including digital soil mapping and innovative soil monitoring systems. Soil degradation, including soil organic matter dynamics, local contamination, erosion and salinization, poses significant threats to soil health and ecosystem function. To mitigate degradation processes, monitoring of the soil-plant-water systems is essential.

The goal of this Research Topic is to bring together research and insights on soil degradation as well as soil monitoring and mapping, with a focus on innovative approaches, methodologies, and applications. By sharing knowledge, experiences, and state of the art research workflows and data sharing practices, this Research Topic also aims to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development goal 15 “Life on Land” and its target indicator 15.3.1 Land degradation.

The scope of this Research Topic includes an overview of research and survey reports on the state of soil degradation, analytical data and laboratory research for new procedures, including the use of remote and proximal sensing, and machine learning algorithms to improve soil modelling and mapping accuracy. We further welcome information on new soil monitoring techniques and data use for modelling such as hydrological models. It also encompasses various approaches to assessing and mitigating soil degradation, such as the use of cover crops, conservation tillage, and amendments. The integration of ground observations and satellite data to improve soil monitoring and prediction is also a key aspect of this Research Topic.

In this Research Topic, we welcome studies on the following subtopics, but not limited to:

• Digital Soil Mapping

• Soil Monitoring Systems

• Soil plant water interaction

• Diffused Soil Pollution

• Land Degradation and Desertification

• Soil Organic Carbon

• Soil Erosion

• Soil in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Soil Degradation, Monitoring and Mapping - Insights from EUROSOIL 2025