influence of climate change on the soil organic carbon content in Italy from 1961 to 2008
Soils are the biggest carbon store in the world (1500Gt, e.g. 1.5×10²¹g). The European Commission indicates the accounting of soil organic carbon (SOC) variations in space and time as the first step in the strategy for soil protection. It is indeed necessary in evaluating the risk of soil organic matter decline and soil biodiversity decline, and when evaluating the role played by soils in global CO₂ accounting. Previous maps of SOC variations in Italy did not consider the direct effect of climate. There is a marked inter-dependence between SOC and climate.