Soils Newsletter, Vol. 33, No. 2, January 2011

In this Newsletter under the Feature Article and Status of Coordinated Research Project (CRP) headings, you will see that stable isotopes can be combined with fallout radionuclides to effectively identify hot spots in critically-degraded areas of agricultural catchments and hence help to target cost-effective measures to conserve soil quality for production and reduce not only soil erosion, but also others forms of soil degradation such as soil salinization. With increasing water scarcity in many parts of the world resulting from the competition for water use from non-agricultural sectors and the impacts of climate change and variability on rainfall distribution, salinization, which is the process of soil and water salinity development and aggravation, can seriously affect crop and livestock production and ultimately farmers' livelihoods. In the Feature Article of this Newsletter, you will find an Abstract relating to a review paper on salinization conducted by the SWMCN Subprogramme which was recently published in the internationally-recognized Advances in Agronomy Journal. In October of this year, I was in Valencia, Spain, to attend the 'Global Forum on Salinization and Climate Change' as a Member of both the Organizing and Scientific Committees. The Forum highlighted the increasing concern in many Member States with this global issue of salinization. A successful integrated approach, involving soil-water management and crop improvement, is evident in the number of technical cooperation projects (TC) that the SWMCN and Plant Breeding and Genetics Sections have been jointly involved in during 2010. Since integrated cropping-livestock production systems are increasingly practiced in many parts of the world, an holistic farm management approach, taking into account the interaction between soil, water and livestock is important to ensure sustainable land productivity for livestock farming. Towards this aim, the SWMCN Section and the Animal Production and Health Section have joined forces to review the importance of water management for livestock productivity. The abstract of this review paper, which will be published in an international journal, is reproduced in the Feature Article for your information. In celebrating the success of 2010, we are looking forward to 2011 with commitment and reliance on your continuing support and guidance. Information on soil carbon sequestration, as influenced by different farming practices including irrigation, fertilizer applications, cropping systems and livestock grazing intensity is important for Member States to enhance soil productivity and to minimize greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide from farmlands. The use of laser-based technology to quantify soil carbon dioxide emissions across the agricultural landscape on an area-wide basis, as shown in the Feature Article section, will provide us with a helping hand in our quest for further information