Costa Rica's Soil Science Association (ACCS), with the cooperation of the National Institute of Innovation and Transfer in Agricultural Technology, INTA, the Advisory Commission on Land Degradation, CADETI, and the MAG, is holding the IX National Soils Congress to raise awareness about the importance of land use for the planet's food security and the development of agriculture adapted to climate change.
This year, the organization decided to include issues related to the Management, Conservation and Recovery of Soils under different uses, which were defined in March during a national workshop with professionals, technicians and farmers engaged in coffee, banana, pineapple, vegetable, and oil palm and pasture crops, among others. The workshop identified major issues that lead to soil degradation, including water management, nutrient management, erosion and compaction, acidity control, and recovery of biodiversity and organic matter.
"Soil produces 95% of the food people consume and it provides a large number of ecosystems services that people are unaware of and do not value. This is why the FAO asks governments to invest more in researching their sustainable use," said Ronald Vargas, the Secretary of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's Global Land Partnership for Food and Agriculture (FAO), and one of the exhibitors at the Congress.
The final objective of the Congress will be defining recommendations for the implementation of different agronomic practices to manage and conserve the soils and water. The Congress aims at generating awareness and education in both producers and citizens so that the country has an adequate planning of the territories, in accordance with the recently published Executive Decree No. 40492-MINAE-MAG, which seeks inter-institutional coordination for the search for neutrality in the degradation of the country's land.
"This decree is a great achievement in positioning the soil resource as a primary good of society. The consequences of the storm Nate, strengthened our conviction that we need to support research and work together to recover our soils," said the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Luis Felipe Arauz Cavallini.
The Congress is being held at the Crowne Plaza Corobici Hotel, from October 25 to the 27, and includes the participation of Costa Rican specialists, technicians and producers, as well as experts from Italy, Bolivia, Brazil, and Venezuela.