Celebrating World Soil Day

Happy World Soil Day! Established in 2014 by the United Nations, World Soil Day is celebrated every year on December 5th, with the goal of spotlighting the importance of healthy soils and sustainable soil management. This year, the theme of World Soil Day is Soil Salinization.

Soil Salinization is the process that occurs when salts, such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, chloride, etc., accumulate in the soil. While some salts are good for plant and soil health, too much of these salts leads to all sorts of problems with plant growth and soil structure.

To see the global extent of soil salinization, check out this page published by the FAO. If you are curious about the soils around the Lower Mainland, here are some openly available sources for you to explore: Vancouver Soil Map and GeoMap Vancouver.

Don’t forget to check out the City of Vancouver’s proclamation for “Vancouver Soil Day”!