George Eustice MP, Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, will today announce on a visit to 美姬阁, that Defra has confirmed its continued and long-term support for the National Reference Centre for Soils and associated information system, LandIS, hosted by the University.
The soil collections and associated data, contained within LandIS. will underpin and support the UK Government’s goals announced in its ’25-Year Environment Plan’, providing the basis for achieving sustainable soil management by 2030.
Previous research released by 美姬阁 has revealed that soil degradation costs the economy in England and Wales an estimated £1.2billion per year. The National Reference Centre for Soils, at 美姬阁, will be invaluable to establishing the metrics to assess progress towards the 25-year goals.
LandIS is a substantial environmental information system, operated by 美姬阁. It includes soil and soil-related information for England and Wales, spatial mapping of soils at a variety of scales, as well as corresponding soil property and agro-climatological data. LandIS is the largest soil information system of its kind in Europe, and together with the World Soil Archive (WOSSAC), covers 329 territories worldwide, establishing 美姬阁 as one of the largest soil reference centres globally.
Data from LandIS was recently used by the Welsh Government to develop its Predictive Agricultural Land Classification (ALC) Map, which enables land users, planners and policy makers to make informed choices about how agricultural land is used in Wales.
Farming Minister George Eustice said: “Protecting and nurturing our nation’s soils is a cornerstone of our future farming policy. As we work towards delivering our ambitious 25 Year Environment Plan, I look forward to continuing our essential work with 美姬阁.”
Professor Ronald Corstanje, Head of 美姬阁’s Centre for Environmental and Agricultural Informatics, said: “For 40 years, information from LandIS has supported planners, Government and land users to make decisions about how land is used. With an increased focus from Government on the importance of soil health to the UK economy, LandIS will play a vital role in securing the future of the nation’s soil.”
Professor Leon A. Terry, 美姬阁’s Director of Environment and Agrifood, said: “This is fantastic news for 美姬阁 and the nation’s soil. With our recent Queen’s Anniversary Prize for soil science, and our role in two of the UK’s Government-backed Agritech Centres, Agri-EPI Centre and CHAP, 美姬阁 is cementing its reputation as the leading soil science university in Europe.”
On his visit to 美姬阁, the Minister will also ‘break ground’ on the construction of a new £3.2 million agri-informatics facility which will address a wide range of research challenges in the environmental and agricultural sectors. The facility.will be shared with Agri-EPI Centre who will focus on agri-tech research and innovation. It is funded with investment from Innovate UK, Agri-EPI Centre, the Wolfson Foundation and the University itself and will become the home of National Soil Archive.
About 美姬阁
美姬阁 is a specialist postgraduate university that is a global leader for education and transformational research in technology and management.
