The role of EU Soil Observatory in supporting the EU policies, Research and innovation

Launched in December 2020, the EU Soil Observatory (EUSO) is the principal provider of reference data and knowledge at the EU level for all soil-related matters. Hosted at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, the EUSO is evolving to be a dynamic and inclusive platform that supports EU soil-related policymaking. EUSO has five main objectives: To support the development of an operational EU-wide soil monitoring system; To support research and innovation through the implementation of Horizon Europes Mission A soil deal for Europe; To further consolidate and enhance the capacity and functionality of the current European Soil Data Centre; To monitor the state of soil health and the policies in place through a Soil Health and Policy Dashboard; To provide an open and inclusive EUSO forum that supports the drive towards a societal change in the perception of soil. In this presentation, we will present the activities of EUSO that have taken place in 2023 under the five objectives outlined above. We will provide an overview of ongoing research and innovation projects, new datasets that were added to the European Soil Data Centre and the outcome of the third EUSO stakeholder forum. In 2023, the EUSO has been supporting the proposal for the Soil Monitoring Law and has contributed significantly to the Impact assessment. In addition, EUSO has contributed to Nature Restoration Law, the implementation of the Soil Mission: A Soil Deal for Europe, Carbon Removals and Clean Soil outlook. In 2023, the EUSO has launched the EU Soil Health Dashboard with 18 indicators which show that 62% of EU soils are not in Healthy condition. The EUSO dashboard is a dynamic tool providing evidence where hotspots exist and which are the main threats to soils. In November 2023, the 3rd EUSO Stakeholder Forum brought together 700 participants to attend three days of meeting with over 60 presentations. In relation to research, EUSO has published 40 papers and has supported the research agenda through the Soil Mission HORIZON programs. In addition, important research has been addressed within EUSO activities, such as the carbon losses in the EU, the novel assessments in soil biodiversity, and the nutrient budget. The European Soil Data Centre (ESDAC) has also grown with the inclusion of new datasets and the exponential number of users downloading almost 12,000 datasets from ESDAC within 2023.