Research project
RECARE: preventing and remediating degradation of soils in Europe through land care
- Start date: 1 November 2013
- End date: 1 October 2018
- Value: €8.5 million; ca. €220,000 to Leeds
- Partners and collaborators: EU FP7 (sponsor); Alterra (Netherlands, co-ordinator); Wageningen University (Netherlands); Technical University of Crete (Greece); Aarhus Universitet (Denmark); Universitat de Valencia (Spain); The Cyprus Institute Limited (Cyprus); Bioforsk (Norway); Universidade de Aveiro (Portugal); Landgraedsla Rikisins (Iceland); Evenor Tech (Spain); Universitaet Bern (Switzerland); Umweltbundesamt GMBH (Austria); ISRIC (Netherlands); JRC - European Commission (Belgium); Ecologic Institut gemeinnützige GmbH (Germany); COREPAGE (Netherlands); Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet (Sweden); CSIC (Spain); Slovenska Technicka Univerzita v Bratislave (Slovakia); ICPA (Romania); IUNG (Poland); University of Gloucestershire (UK); Research Institute for Knowledge Systems (Netherlands); Cranfield University (UK); Universita degli Studi di Padova (Italy); Kongskilde Industries (Denmark).
- Primary investigator: Professor Lindsay C. Stringer
- Co-investigators: Professor Claire Helen Quinn, Professor Mike Kirkby, Dr Brian Irvine
Although there is a large body of knowledge available on soil threats in Europe, this knowledge is fragmented and incomplete, in particular regarding the complexity and functioning of soil systems and their interaction with human activities. The main aim of RECARE is to develop effective prevention, remediation and restoration measures using an innovative trans-disciplinary approach, actively integrating and advancing knowledge of stakeholders and scientists in 17 Case Studies, covering a range of soil threats in different bio-physical and socio-economic environments across Europe. This will be achieved through: (a) assessing the current state of degradation and conservation using a new methodology, based on the WOCAT mapping procedure; (b) quantifying the impacts of degradation and conservation on soil functions and ecosystem services in a harmonized, spatially explicit way, accounting for costs and benefits, and possible trade-offs; (c) selecting and implementing prevention, remediation and restoration measures with stakeholders in a participatory process, including evaluation of their efficacy; and (d) assessing the applicability and impact of these measures at the European level using a new integrated bio-physical and socio-economic model, accounting for land use dynamics as a result of, for instance, economic development and policies.