Soil Quality Indicators, establishing an operational definition of soil quality

Fellowship Code: 
ESR3
Host: 
RIJKSUNIVERSITEIT GRONINGEN
Supervisor: 
Prof. Jan Dirk van Elsas

Project ESR3 will search for, and establish, a set of indicators for soil quality (health) . Briefly, we will build upon our vast experience with the characterization of soil microbial communities that are key to functioning, and then single out those that are determinative for soil quality, allowing the design of indicators (which will be molecular in nature). We will then validate such indicators across a range of soils under varying conditions of health and stress.

Research Objectives: 

Train one ESR for 36 months in establishing an operational definition of soil quality.