Knowledge and sustainable management of agricultural soils in Portugal: barriers and opportunities

Abstract

There are currently serious challenges that place great pressure on soil resources. The sustainable management of agricultural land is essential to alleviate these pressures and to increase the contribution of these soils to some of the main challenges facing society, such as adaptation and mitigation of climate change. Within the scope of the EJP SOIL, an organized consultation was carried out with several administrators of the soil resource to assess the knowledge and management of agricultural soils in Portugal. This study aimed to identify important barriers and challenges currently affecting agricultural soil knowledge, but also to assess opportunities to overcome these barriers. Among the most important barriers identified are those of a technical, networking, communication, and economic nature, which greatly limit the development and full use of knowledge from soil research. The results of this study suggest that sustainable soil management will benefit from: increased funding for research, establishment of long-term experimental trials, creation of knowledge networks and national infrastructures linked to those operating at European level and development of regional strategies for soil management. All these measures contribute to healthier, resilient and sustainable soil ecosystems in Portugal.