Why soil matters?

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20 Why soils matters - A european perspective
It is very important to gather the most successful
examples of soil management which we can share as
solutions to improve work in the field. In her presentation,
Jenny Wong explained that the COP21 would not come
up with solutions on soil management, but that there
are other avenues within the UN process to talk
about soil and land use issues .
At the level of the UNFCCC, agriculture is under consid-
eration in a subsidiary body - the Subsidary Body for
Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA). It supports
the work of the Conference of the Parties (COP) and
the Conference and Meeting of the Parties of the
Kyoto protocol (CMP), through the provision of timely
information and advice on scientific technological mat-
ters as they relate to the Convention or the Kyoto
Protocol.
Jenny Wong stressed that the decision-making process
in this body is long and difficult, and it may take years for
parties to come up with an internationally agreed package
of methodological and financial guidance on how a coun-
try can implement actions to reduce emissions.
The SBSTA focuses more on adaptation aspects, with par-
ties prioritising the exchange of technical information and
scientific development.
Jenny Wong reminded the audience that, this year, the
UNFCCC held 2 workshops on
and on the importance of particu-
larly for farmers in developing countries, to examine how
farmers actually cope with the impacts of climate change,
and adapt and build better resilience to extreme weather
events.
As contribution towards Paris, there was a process of
technical expert meetings, i.e a technical examination
process which showcased activities and possible
solutions through international cooperation. In these
meetings, a broad range of actors reported their actions
on adaptation and mitigation projects. According to
Mrs Wong, this kind of meeting helps governments
and stakeholders to identify contributions towards the
solutions. In 2014, one such meeting was dedicated
to land use, touching upon agriculture as part of the
discussion. In this regard, Jenny Wong stressed that there
is room for further discussion on land use as a sector that
could deliver a high mitigation and adaptation potential.
Jenny Wong reminded us that all
are required to report annual emissions and sinks
of greenhouse gases under the UNFCCC. Within this
exercise, they report on agriculture, land use and
forestry. One field of the report is soil, but, according to
Mrs Wong, many countries find it difficult to report on
soil, as changes in soils can take a long time to manifest
themselves in monitoring. It is an even greater challenge
for developing countries to report on soil as a carbon
pool, as they have difficulties in reporting on soil’s above-
ground biomass, let alone below-ground biomass. The
challenge is to help them to report better on the carbon
pools of which soil is a part. Mrs Wong ended by saying
that it is very important to gather the most successful
examples of soil management from different countries
and to share them, as solutions to improve work in the
field.
Jenny Wong,
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC)
It is very important to gather
the most successful examples
of soil management which we
can share as solutions to
improve work in the field’
Jenny Wong
Proceedings of the Conference