Agriculture
The Nigeria Institute of Soil Science (NISS) has identified fighting loss of soil biodiversity as key to global food security and achievement of over half of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Prof Victor Chude, Registrar of NISS said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja ahead of the commemoration of the 2020 World Soil Day (WSD).
The WSD is commemorated annually on Dec. 5 to celebrate healthy soils for a food-secure future.
The theme for the 2020 WSD is “Keep soil alive, Protect soil biodiversity”
NAN reports that soil biodiversity is the variety of life that exists within the soil, including bacteria, fungi, earthworms and termites.
The registrar who described soils as highly valuable natural resources noted that they were also finite.
He added that when soil degrades it is not recoverable within human lifespan.
“Sustainability is key. Let us start making soil health and biodiversity a priority.
“We rely heavily on soils for everything we do. They are the basis for food, feed, fuel and lie at the heart of many ecosystems.
‘’Fighting loss of soil biodiversity is key to global food security and the achievement of more than half of the SDGs,” Chude said.
According to the registrar, some of the reasons why everyone ought to take action to protect soil biodiversity was that biodiversity was essential for food.
He explained that some of the practices that could help to protect soil biodiversity included avoiding the removal of vegetation from the soil cover and maintaining crop diversity
Others are composting and using natural shelters such as hedges to help prevent the erosive effects of wind and water on large fields, crop rotation or agroforestry, and storing carbon in plants biomass and soils.
“We can all play a role in protecting soil biodiversity by raising awareness and advocating for soil biodiversity education, managing soil resources sustainably among others,” Chude said. (NAN)
– Dec. 3, 2020 @ 14:15 GMT |
Tags: Combating loss of soil biodiversity key to global food security – NISS
