Soil erosion and land degradation are impacting landscapes due to a combination of climate events, soil characteristics and anthropogenic modifications such as land use change. Mediterranean regions and other semi-arid regions are prone to droughts and flood events due to their high climate variability. Therefore, soil and water conservation (SWC) measures have been implemented to preserve natural resources while maintaining and/or increasing agriculture productivity. Today, traditional SWC and recent SWC approaches co-exist and it is difficult to evaluate their performances. Finally, the use of SWC measures take a new dimension with the prospect of climate change.
In this context, this session will focus on recent and past development of SWC, especially related to:
i) the dynamics of hydrological and sediment fluxes in the Mediterranean context and in other erosion prone areas context;
ii) the performance of environmental, agronomical and socio-economic indexes of SWC measures applied in erosion prone areas (including both on- and off-site effects);
iii) the spatial distribution of water and sediment sources and pathways so that the best management practice (BMPs) and/or conservation practices can be better implemented;
iv) modelling studies including erosion and hydrological modelling and evaluation tools for implementing sustainable management strategies.
This session encompasses activities related to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 15.3 on Land Degradation Neutrality