SOILHARMONY
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Towards a harmonised pan-European monitoring of soil health descriptors
Total cost € 6 085 898,01 EU contribution € 5 997 773,01 Funding Programme Horizon Europe

SoilHamony aims at developing transfer functions (TF) and pedotransfer functions (PTF) to support the implementation of the soil monitoring law (SML) and the EU Carbon Removal and Carbon Farming (CRCF) Regulation. It will also align with the EU mission: a soil deal for Europe, by supporting the development of a harmonized framework for soil monitoring in the EU towards healthy soils. TF will allow converting data obtained using national methods into those defined in the SML. The project will identify and collect existing source data, including archived samples, and existing derived and validated TF and PTF in a FAIR by design process. TF and PTF will be developed for main soil descriptors proposed in Annexe 1 and 2 of the SML. The effect of field sampling methods on the analytical results will also be characterized and recommendations to consider differences in methodologies will be provided. The TF will be validated with 4000 samples covering at least 21 MS and 80% of the EU land surface area with good representativeness of the various land uses. PTF will be validated without additional sampling but with new data to be collected from partners. The project will determine and operationalise the most reliable statistical methods for deriving TF and PTF. SoilHarmony will give access to the validated TF and PTF to all the entities responsible for the SML implementation and relevant stakeholders in an interoperable manner. A FAIR metadata catalogue and a soil database will efficiently gather already existing and newly acquired knowledge and data as DOI referenceable (meta)datasets. A converter toolbox will be freely available and composed of a back-end R package with built-in statistical methods and a user-friendly web application that will allow converting directly the national data into SML compliant data. MS will be actively involved in the construction through the 28 partners and their network, efficiently managed to maximise uptake of the results.


 

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05

Thematic areas

Biodiversity

Project contribution to Mission Soil’s:

Specific objectives

  • 1. Reduce land degradation relating to desertification
    Not targeted
  • 2. Conserve and increase soil organic carbon stocks
    Not targeted
  • 3. No net soil sealing and increase the reuse of urban soils
    Not targeted
  • 4. Reduce soil pollution and enhance restoration
    Not targeted
  • 5. Prevent erosion
    Not targeted
  • 6. Improve soil structure to enhance habitat quality for soil biota and crops
    Not targeted
  • 7. Reduce the EU global footprint on soils
    Not targeted
  • 8. Increase soil literacy in society across Member States
    Not targeted

Operational objectives

  • 1. Build capacities and the knowledge base for soil stewardship
    Not targeted
  • 2. Co-create and upscale place-based innovations to improve soil health in all places
    Not targeted
  • 3. Develop an integrated EU soil monitoring system and track progress towards soil health
    Not targeted
  • 4. Engage with the soil user community and society at large
    Not targeted

Innovation hotspots

  • 1. Carbon farming
    Not targeted
  • 2. Soil pollution and restoration
    Not targeted
  • 3. Soil biodiversity including the microbiome
    Not targeted
  • 4. Circular economy solutions
    Not targeted

Cross-cutting dimensions

  • 1. Business
    Not targeted
  • 2. Digital
    Not targeted
  • 3. Territorial
    Not targeted
  • 4. International
    Not targeted

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