Global Soil Organic Carbon Map Gsocmap V 1 6

GSOCmap is the first global soil organic carbon map ever produced through a consultative and participatory process involving member countries, which makes this map totally new and unique. In fact, the map was prepared by member countries, under the guidance of the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils and the Global Soil Partnership Secretariat. Countries agreed on the methodology to produce the map and were trained on modern tools and methodologies to develop national maps. The Global Soil Partnership then gathered all national maps to produce the final product, ensuring a thorough harmonization process. This technical report is a companion report to the GSOCmap V1.5. It presents methodologies and process of compiling the Global Soil Organic Carbon Map.

This document presents the technical details of the first-ever country-driven Global Soil Organic Carbon Map (GSOCmap). This map allows the estimation of Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) stocks from 0 to 30 cm. It represents a key contribution to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicator 15.3.1, which defines the area of degraded land. The novelty of this map is the fact that it is the first Global SOC stocks assessment which is produced through a participatory approach. Supported by the GSP-Secretariat, countries developed their capacities and stepped up efforts to compile or collect all available soil information at the national level. This technical report is a companion report to the GSOCmap V1.6.0. It presents methodologies and process of compiling the Global Soil organic Carbon Map (GSOCmap).

Responding to a request for support in addressing the Sustainable Development Goal Indicators, especially Indicator 15.3 which includes the restoration of degraded soils, the Global Soil Partnership (GSP) Plenary Assembly in 2020 instructed the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils (ITPS) and the GSP Secretariat to develop the Global Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration Potential map (GSOCseq map), following the same country-driven approach developed for the Global Soil Organic Carbon map (GSOCmap). This ‘bottom-up’ approach is expected to generate a GSOCseq map from national SOCseq maps, developed and validated by local experts, based on the implementation of SOC models using standardized procedures and by leveraging the best available local data.

This document presents the technical details of the first ever country-driven Global Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration Potential Map (GSOCseq). This map allows for the estimation of top (0–30 cm) soil organic carbon sequestration potential in agricultural areas under a business as usual and three sustainable soil management scenarios. The Global Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration Potential Map (GSOCseq) stands out as a game-changing program aimed at bridging this divide by raising technical expertise on SOC sequestration potential modeling and mapping while relying on a uniquely participatory and iterative process. The GSOCseq v1.1 was developed based on the submissions of national experts appointed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Member Nations. Each of the appointed National Experts generated national maps following a bottom-up approach that was facilitated and coordinated by the Secretariat of FAO’s Global Soil Partnership (GSP).

The Soil Organic Carbon Mapping cookbook provides a step-by-step guidance for developing 1 km grids for soil carbon stocks. It includes the preparation of local soil data, the compilation and pre-processing of ancillary spatial data sets, upscaling methodologies, and uncertainty assessments. Guidance is mainly specific to soil carbon data, but also contains many generic sections on soil grid development, as it is relevant for other soil properties. This second edition of the cookbook provides generic methodologies and technical steps to produce SOC maps and has been updated with knowledge and practical experiences gained during the implementation process of GSOCmap V1.0 throughout 2017. Guidance is mainly specific to SOC data, but as this cookbook contains generic sections on soil grid development it can be applicable to map various soil properties.

The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and FAO's Global Soil Partnership collaborated with experts from across Asia and other regions to produce the first-ever Soil Atlas of Asia. The aim of the Atlas is to raise awareness about the significance of soil to life in Asia among a wide range of audiences, including the general public, decision makers, politicians, teachers, and scientists from other disciplines. The Atlas comprises a series of annotated maps that demonstrate the diversity of soil characteristics across Asia in an easy-to-understand manner. It also explains how soils are formed, the key factors that shape soil characteristics, and why these vary across the continent. Moreover, the Atlas emphasizes the role of soils in shaping our daily lives and highlights the growing pressures on soils resulting from urban expansion, inappropriate land management, pollution, increased demand for food, and climate change. The Atlas encourages people to understand how their actions can help protect and restore soils while reducing degradation processes.

Salt-affected soils such as saline or sodic soils are distributed in all continents at various levels of problem intensity. They are soils with high amounts of soluble salts and/or sodium ions. An updated information of their distribution and drivers is a first step towards their sustainable management. This book provides technical guidelines and approach for developing a harmonized multiscale soil information of salt-affected soils. The book is organized into three sections covering seven chapters. The sections are sequentially arranged but independently designed to benefit focused readership who may want to go straight to any section. Section 1 gives the background information. It has three chapters covering existing literature on the characteristics and mapping methods for salt problems in the soil. It is intended to illustrate the basic concepts, linkage of the characteristics of salt-affected soils with input data requirements for their mapping, existing classification methods, and global distribution of these soils. Section 2 covers the methodological procedures for developing multiscale spatial information of salt-affected soils. It has two chapters describing requirements, input data preparation, and the procedural steps for developing spatial information of salt-affected soils. It outlines how data from different sources and characteristics are harmonized and integrated to produce information of salt-affected soils. Section 3 covers information sharing and resources mobilization when developing information on salt-affected soils. It gives the guidelines for preparing spatial maps and steps for value-addition to benefit end-users of the information. It also contains a generic training program for building technical capacity for mapping salt-affected

The publication was launched at the Global Symposium on Soil Organic Carbon (GSOC) held at FAO headquarters (Rome, 21-23 March 2017). It provides an overview to decision-makers and practitioners of the main scientific facts and information regarding the current knowledge and knowledge gaps on Soil Organic Carbon. It highlights how better information and good practices may be implemented to support ending hunger, adapting to and mitigating climate change and achieving overall sustainable development.