Geospatial Technologies for Land Degradation Assessment and Management

Name: Geospatial Technologies for Land Degradation Assessment and Management
Brand: CRC Press

CRC Press

The constant growth of the world\u2019s population and the decline of the availability of land and soil resources are global concerns for food security. Other concerns are the decrease in productivity and delivery of essential ecosystems services because of the decline of soil quality and health by a range of degradation processes. Key soil properties like soil bulk density, organic carbon concentration, plant available water capacity, infiltration rate, air porosity at field moisture capacity, and nutrient reserves, are crucial properties for soil functionality which refers to the capacity of soil to perform numerous functions. These functions are difficult to measure directly and are estimated through indices of soil quality and soil health. Soil degradation, its extent and severity, can also be estimated by assessing indices of soil quality and health.