From space to soil

Recognising the urgencies of addressing soil sealing and its associated challenges, an ESA-funded project, Ulysses, is offering insights into the extent and severity of soil sealing to mitigate soil degradation in the Mediterranean region.

Soil sealing refers to the process whereby soil surfaces are covered by impermeable materials such as concrete, asphalt or buildings, preventing water from infiltrating into the ground.

This can contribute to various environmental problems, including flooding, soil erosion, loss of biodiversity and decreased soil fertility.

Soil sealing also exacerbates the urban heat island effect by reducing the cooling effect of soil evaporation and vegetation.

Soil sealing monitoring is crucial, particularly for Mediterranean coastal areas, where soil degradation, combined with drought periods and fires, contributes to desertification risk.

The project utilises Copernicus Sentinel-2 data to generate detailed maps depicting the extent and severity of soil sealing across the entire coastline of the Mediterranean Sea - enabling researchers to meticulously track changes in soil composition and permeability over time.

The maps have allowed for the quantification and monitoring of soil sealing over the Mediterranean basin, supporting users and stakeholders involved in monitoring and preventing land degradation.

Luca Congedo, from ISPRA said, "The availability of soil sealing maps, frequently updated with a methodology providing homogeneous results across the Mediterranean coast, allows for the calculation of fundamental indicators that can be used in international initiatives related to environment monitoring, and foster soil protection policies."

The project fits perfectly with the proposed EU Soil Monitoring Law which aims to protect and restore soils to ensure they are used sustainably.

The law aims to address key soil threats in the EU, such as erosion, floods, landslides, sealing, as well as the loss of soil biodiversity.