Achieving land degradation neutrality in developing countries

Abstract

Land degradation, decline in functionality and weakening of ecosystem services (ESs), is a serious problem in India. Different processes of land degradation include decline in soil structure, soil erosion by water and wind, salinization, depletion of soil organic matter (SOM) content, negative nutrient budget and elemental imbalance, water imbalance including drought and inundation, loss of above and below-ground biodiversity, top soil removal for brick making etc. As a signatory to implementing the concept of land degradation neutrality (LDN) implemented by United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), India aspires to restore 26 Million hectares (M ha) of degraded lands by 2030. Realizing the target necessitates establishment of baseline state-of-the-land-resource capital through choice of key land/soil parameters, establishment of critical level of key soil properties, selection of region-specific sustainable land management (SLM) practices, involvement of community and land managers in implementation of SLM to restore degraded land, and development of a protocol for payments to farmers for ESs (PESs). Supporting land managers through PESs must be done on the basis of transparent, just and fair price and based on societal value of the resource for specific ESs such as carbon sequestration, restoring ground water and conserving surface water, improving water quality, and restoring above and below-ground biodiversity. Once the program is implemented, its impact on land quality must be documented in a 5-yearly state-of-theland report at national level. There must be channels of communication between scientists and policy makers, and the latter and general public. Environmental education must be part of the curricula from primary school to post graduate level.