Phytoremediation and the Legal Study of Soil, Animals and Plants

Abstract

Soils are under increasing environmental pressure in every country across the globe. This pressure is mainly driven or exacerbated by human activities, such as agricultural and forestry practices, industrial activities, tourism and urban development. Over recent decades, there has been a significant increase in the rate of soil degradation, with no sign that it will be ameliorated. The main threats to which soils are subjected are erosion, chemical contamination, compaction, biodiversity loss, sealing, landslides and flooding. Soils are a resource of common concern both within and between nations, and failure to protect them will undermine ecological and economic sustainability. Soil degradation has strong impacts on other areas of common interest, such as water quality and quantity, climate change, biological diversity, human health, and in particular, food and feed safety and food security.