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Soil health: A role for arbuscular mycorrhizas
Lynette Abbott from The University of Western Australia, focuses on soil health again, this time examining the role of arbuscular mycorrhizas. Mycorrhizas are common associations between plants and highly specialised fungi that participate in important soil health processes, including nutrient uptake by plants. This can include nutrients from fertilisers, the breakdown of soil organic matter, and soil minerals. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form extensive networks of hyphae in soil that extend around roots and increase the soil volume that can be explored. In addition to nutrient scavenging, the hyphae contribute to maintaining a friable soil structure that benefits root growth and even helps plants access water in tiny soil pores when soil conditions are dry. Mycorrhizas may also contribute to protection against root disease.

AbstractSoil degradation is a critical and growing global problem. As the world population increases, pressure on soil also increases and the natural capital of soil faces continuing decline. International policy makers have recognized this and a range of initiatives to address it have emerged over recent years. However, a gap remains between what the science tells us about soil and its role in underpinning ecological and human sustainable development, and existing policy instruments for sustainable development. Functioning soil is necessary for ecosystem service delivery, climate change abatement, food and fiber production and fresh water storage. Yet key policy instruments and initiatives for sustainable development have under‐recognized the role of soil in addressing major challenges including food and water security, biodiversity loss, climate change and energy sustainability. Soil science has not been sufficiently translated to policy for sustainable development. Two underlying reasons for this are explored and the new concept of soil security is proposed to bridge the science–policy divide. Soil security is explored as a conceptual framework that could be used as the basis for a soil policy framework with soil carbon as an exemplar indicator.