Santa Fe's agricultural establishments have the lowest levels of sustainable land management practices in the country.
This July 7th, established as Soil Conservation Day, is an opportunity to raise awareness and promote appropriate soil care practices, given that two-thirds of the country's soils show some form of degradation of this resource, which is vital for food production, climate regulation, biodiversity, and water management.
According to a study in which the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of the UNR participated, along with the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and other agricultural institutions, Santa Fe's agricultural establishments have the lowest levels of sustainable land management practices in the country. Sustainability is understood as the ability to adapt to external disturbances and sustain long-term environmental, social, and economic outcomes. In this sense, sustainable practices are those that serve to improve these areas.
The survey by the Systems Study Network (RedES) evaluated, among other things, crop rotation, the type of phytosanitary products used, and whether they monitor soil health. The results showed that, on average, the sustainability level is 6 out of 10. Buenos Aires and Córdoba have the highest levels of sustainability, Santa Fe the lowest, and the other provinces fall somewhere in between.
“Despite the efforts and commitment of many institutions working on this issue, soil degradation rates continue to grow,” says Sergio Montico, Chair of the Land Management Chair at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences at the UNR. The types of degradation recognized in Provincial Law 10552 refer to acidification, water erosion, physical deterioration, chemical deterioration, and their impacts on urban areas: waterlogging and flooding.
Among the local problems, the agricultural engineer explains that "we are not accustomed to working in watersheds as many countries around the world do." Watersheds are sectors delimited by elevations in the terrain that collect water and drain it to a common point. "We don't think about managing the land as a whole, but rather about managing the industry on the land."
Another difficulty is that due to a "domino effect," water cannot be harvested in the fields, a highly valuable resource for agricultural production. Deteriorated soils lose porosity and infiltration, and water runs off, erodes, and when it doesn't erode because there's no slope, it remains on the surface.
Added to this is climate change and meteorological modifications. According to studies by the Faculty of Exact Sciences, Engineering, and Surveying, there are observed variations in rainfall patterns, which are now connective, torrential, and cellular. Extreme events are generally marked by low- to medium-intensity rainfall. This means that light rain saturates the soil, then torrential rain occurs, and when it hits the wet ground, the water cannot penetrate and runs off, generating flooding and erosion.
Furthermore, a long-term decrease in precipitation days is expected, meaning the same amount of rain will fall in less time. "In this regard, we are not doing much with regard to the soil or preparing the land system and drainage control structures," Montico warns.
Yellow soils
To understand how the soil's physical capacity is lost, the researcher explains that organic matter is what binds its particles together. Depending on the amount of organic matter, the closer or closer they are, the more or less porous they are, and therefore, more or less, the possibility of water and air circulation. "When a soil compacts, it becomes denser and does not allow water or air to pass through—two important inputs for the life of the soil, roots, and crops," he explains. This can occur due to overuse, insufficient maintenance, water erosion, or traffic.
Regarding water erosion, it occurs when there is significant rainfall and a layer of water accumulates on the upper part of the soil, moving and eroding this surface portion until it is lost, generating accumulation in undesirable areas, among many other problems. In this regard, Montico asserts that there is a problem with our soil's inability to store the water necessary to sustain local productivity.
From an agronomic perspective, water and soil are two important resources for production. For example: a 35 mm rainfall, which allows 30% of the water to run off, generates 100 cubic meters of water per hectare. In 100 hectares, that's 10.000 cubic meters of water, equivalent to 350 tanker trucks just for a downpour. "This is free water that remains circulating in the land, which should have been harvested on the plot, and ends up generating sediment and associated problems in the urban environment. When there's excess, it begins to press on the groundwater and rises."
The water that doesn't end up in the fields ends up on rural roads. Santa Fe has 66.000 km of rural roads, creating a daily connectivity deficit. "We have an obsolete and chaotic infrastructure, with sewers, culverts, and canals, where the road is part of the drainage network."
As a result of these difficulties, between 1 and 1,5 cm of soil thickness is lost each year due to deterioration, resulting from poor runoff management and improper land use. Furthermore, this soil is home to more than 25% of the biological diversity, which is also being lost. Some maps show how the soil's organic matter, pH, and phosphorus levels have degraded, and everything that was green has turned ochre and yellow, which means a long-term loss of productive capacity.
According to a 2023 study by the Argentine Stock Exchange, only 23% of producers in Argentina conduct soil analysis. This means that nearly 80% don't know what they're using to produce, even though a basic analysis costs 1500 pesos per hectare.
"We can't continue like this. For success, we must achieve integrated management of organic matter, carbon, phosphorus, and water balances," says the Agricultural Sciences professor, emphasizing that the soil's productive capacity puts food production and agricultural profitability at risk.
Journalist: Victoria Arrabal/Photographer: Camila Casero