SOILCOM, Interreg VB North Sea Region Programme

SOILCOM

Introduction

Welkom on the SOILCOM website. SOILCOM is a project co-funded by the North Sea Region Program.

The agricultural soil quality is decreasing across Europe. However, resilient and high quality soils are the most important starting point for a healthy cultivation. Soil degradation also increases environmental eutrophication and green house gas emissions.

Increases of Soil Organic Matter mitigate this soil degradation by enhancing soil biodiversity, reducing soil erosion and compaction. And delivering soil functions of for example water storage and waterfiltering, nutrient retention. And thus supporting healthy crops.

SOILCOM partners have seen that there is fragmented knowledge on how to increase SOM trough the use of compost, derived from biological waste. Moreover this knowledge is not being adopted by growers due to low availability of quality composts and the lack of awareness and willingness to solve problems of low quality soils by horticultural growers.

To respond to this current situation the overall objective of SOILCOM is to provide the NSR authorities involved in biological waste, compost and water management with tools to regulate and administer the sector. We will also provide NSR practitioners involved in compost production and use with tools to develop and implement new quality compost products for specific uses, as economically and environmentally effective soil improvers.

The long term effect of SOILCOM is to preserve and protect the environment by having positive impacts on soil quality, system resilience, soil carbon storage and reduced pesticide use.