National soil study to launch soon

The Senate will launch a new national soil health study this autumn.

 “The last study was done in 1984, chaired by Senator Herbert Sparrow,” said Senator Rob Black. “When I got into the chamber four-and-a-half years ago, I set my sights on another Senate study.”

Why it matters: Understanding soils in Canada is important to understanding soil health, climate sequestration and creating a base for precision agriculture.

The last soil health study, Soil at Risk – Canada’s Eroding Future, known colloquially as the Sparrow Report, is nearly four decades old, and the information and recommendations are sorely outdated.

 In the spring, the Senate’s Agricultural and Forestry Standing Committee, which Black chairs, passed an order of reference to undertake a national soil health study.

“(It) will look at the health of soils in Canada from a variety of perspectives, environmental, economic, from a focus on agriculture, but also focused on what Canadians, in general, need to know about the health of that soil of theirs,” he said. “We all have to worry about it, as opposed to just farmers.”

Black said the study should begin in September 2022 and occur over 18 months to two years, with coinciding smaller studies. The final report will likely contain several recommendations aimed at government, agriculture, Canadians and soil and crop improvement associations and groups, he said. 

The Sparrow report contained 20 recommendations, with approximately three-quarters acted upon, said Black, including the creation of the Conservation Council of Canada, which he said does excellent national work.

“I’m not presupposing anything right now,” Black said, adding his hope is “there’ll be interim reports that folks can jump on and move forward sooner than later” rather than waiting for the penultimate report.