Table Of ContentShabbir A. Shahid
Faisal K. Taha
Mahmoud A. Abdelfattah
Editors
Developments
in Soil Classifi cation,
Land Use Planning
and Policy
Implications
Innovative Thinking of Soil Inventory
for Land Use Planning and Management
of Land Resources
D evelopments in Soil Classifi c ation,
Land Use Planning and Policy Implications
S habbir A. S hahid • F aisal K. T aha
M ahmoud A. A bdelfattah
E ditors
D evelopments in Soil
Classifi c ation, Land Use
Planning and Policy
Implications
I nnovative Thinking of Soil Inventory
for Land Use Planning and Management
of Land Resources
E ditors
S habbir A. S hahid F aisal K. T aha
I nternational Center for Biosaline Agriculture I nternational Center for Biosaline Agriculture
D ubai, U nited Arab Emirates D ubai, U nited Arab Emirates
Mahmoud A. Abdelfattah
S oil and Land Use Management
Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi
A bu Dhabi, U nited Arab Emirates
I SBN 978-94-007-5331-0 I SBN 978-94-007-5332-7 (eBook)
D OI 10.1007/978-94-007-5332-7
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F oreword
P roductive and fertile soils are a scarce resource in the arid and especially in the
hyperarid desert environments. Using an internationally accepted soil classifi c ation
system is a prerequisite for a common international and national understanding
about soil typologies and their implications for sustainable land use planning.
R ecognizing this need, the idea emerged to organize an international conference
and invite top-level experts in soil science and related disciplines to discuss techno-
logical advancements in soil resources and land use planning for better agricultural
and environmental outcomes in the future. Enhanced agriculture production and
more sustainable outcomes are critical to improve food security.
T he international conference, “S oil Classifi c ation and Reclamation o f Degraded
Lands in A rid Environments, ” was held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan
Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region Abu Dhabi
and Chairman of Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD)) in 17–19 May 2010.
It proved to be the ideal forum to share and discuss with national and international
audience the research fi n dings and implications of these outcomes of the “Soil Survey
of Abu Dhabi Emirate.” The survey had been jointly completed by Environment
Agency – Abu Dhabi and the Dubai-based International Center for Biosaline
Agriculture through a contractor GRM International Pty Australia during 2006–2009.
The survey fi n dings published as the Abu Dhabi Soil Survey R eport were offi c ially
launched at the conference.
D uring the conference, broad issues related to the advancement of soil classifi c ation
systems, new trends in land degradation and desertifi c ation, and land use planning
and policy directions were raised. It is these topics which are presented in this book
to assist in a better understanding of the role of the soil in land use planning to
ensure sustainable environmental and agricultural use.
v
vi Foreword
I wish to thank H.E. Mohammed Al-Bowardi (Managing Director EAD), H.E.
Majid Al Mansouri, then Secretary General EAD, and Her Excellency Ms Razan
Al-Mubarak (Secretary General EAD) for their inspiration and respective endeavors
to ensure the success of the conference and subsequent publication of its proceedings.
Director General, International Center Shawki Barghouti
for Biosaline Agriculture
Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
P reface
T his book is the outcome of an International Conference on Soil Classifi c ation and
Reclamation of Degraded Lands in Arid Environments held during 17–19 May
2010 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi
(EAD) and Dubai-based International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA)
jointly organized the conference. The main objective of the conference was to bring
renowned scientists, educators, and policy makers to share and discuss conference
technical themes in broader perspectives and assist EAD in paving the way forward
for future activities in soil and land management in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
W e received overwhelming response to the call for papers, and over 250 abstracts
were received from over 35 countries. The abstracts were reviewed, and those
suitable were accepted for the submission of full manuscripts. The diversity of the
conference themes made it necessary to publish these papers into two independent
books. Prior to publication of the book, all preselected chapters went through rig-
orous technical review and through an iterative review process with authors before
fi n alization for publication.
T he chapters published in this book, D evelopments in Soil Classifi c ation, L and
Use Planning and P olicy Implications: I nnovative Thinking of Soil I nventory for
Land Use P lanning and Management of L and Resources, represent part of the
conference proceedings. The rest of the chapters are published in a separate book,
D evelopments in Soil Salinity A ssessment and R eclamation: I nnovative Thinking of
Using M arginal Soil and Water R esources in Irrigated Agriculture.
I n this book, chapters pertaining to soil survey and classifi c ation, land use plan-
ning and policy implications, new trends in land degradation and desertifi c ation,
modeling of soil and groundwater contamination, and innovations in research,
development, education, and extension are presented in fi v e parts divided into 50
chapters.
P art I deals with national soil inventories and advances in digital soil mapping,
and examples from Abu Dhabi Emirate, Australia, Central Asia, Dubai Emirate,
Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Kuwait, Nigeria, Siberia, Sudan, Uzbekistan, and the USA
are included. Part II deals with land use planning and policy implications, and topics
such as land use planning and policy development, general land use framework,
vii
viii Preface
integrated agricultural land use, agricultural land conversion, common land
resources, and participatory land evaluation have been included from countries
such as Austria, Australia, Brazil, East Botswana, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Indonesia,
Nigeria, South Africa, Southern Kazakhstan, and UAE. Part III presents chapters
on new trends in land degradation and desertifi c ation from Germany, Italy, Kuwait,
and Egypt, including topics such as controlling land degradation, methodological
approaches for desertifi c ation measurement, managing the hazard of drought and
shifting sands in drylands, and soil degradation assessment. Part IV includes
chapters on modeling of soil and groundwater contamination from India and Oman.
Part V shares innovative work in research, development, education, and extension,
including information sharing, innovations in soil chemical analyses, mycorrhiza,
environmental isotopes, QA standards in soil survey, and lombricompost use, from
India, Jordan, Madagascar, Morocco, Thailand, UAE, and the USA.
W e hope the book will be an excellent addition and contribution to the science
and knowledge of soil survey and management of land resources in arid regions.
S habbir A. Shahid
Faisal K. Taha
Mahmoud A. Abdelfattah
A cknowledgements
I would like to express my thanks and appreciation for the assistance received from
the managements of Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) and International
Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) in organizing the conference and publi-
cation of this book. I would like to thank H.E. Majid Al Mansouri, then Secretary
General (EAD) and Chairman of the conference, for his support, guidance, and
encouragement to convene the conference. The staff from EAD and ICBA were
instrumental in the planning and organizing of the conference and deserve recogni-
tion and special thanks. The contribution of members of both Steering and Technical
Committees is greatly appreciated.
S pecial thanks go to Dr. Shawki Barghouti (ICBA Director General) for his kind
support and approval of funds to publish the proceedings of the conference. Her
Excellency Ms Razan Al-Mubarak (Secretary General EAD) endorsed this publica-
tion, and we extend our thanks to her. My sincere acknowledgements go to the editors
of this book, as well as to Dr. Henda Mahmoudi (Visiting Scientist) and Ghazi Jawad
Al-Jabri (Communications Coordinator) whose professionalism, dedication, and
careful reviewing facilitated the printing. The Springer Publishing House deserves
“thank you” for taking the challenging task of publishing this book and assisting
with its distribution.
L ast but not least, thanks to all competent scientists and partners for their
invaluable contributions that made it possible to produce these proceedings.
C hairman F aisal K. T aha
T echnical Committee
I nternational Conference on Soil Classifi c ation and
R eclamation of Degraded Lands in Arid Environments
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