Barisal Correspondent :
World Soil Day (WSD) 2016 was observed in Barisal with the slogan,’Soils & Pulses, Symbiosis for Life ‘ on Monday calling to adapt soil usage and development policy for saving the soil to maintain biodiversity.
The WSD 2016 celebrated on the 5th of December at FAO Headquarters in Rome and FAO regional offices and their partners’ worldwide to connect people with soils and raise awareness on its critical importance in our lives.
A procession and seminar was organised on this occasion at Conference Room of Barisal University.
It was presided over by Dr. Md. Hasinur Rahman, chairman of soil and environment science department of BU.
Dr. S M Imamul Haque, vice chancellor of BU and president of Bangladesh Soil Science Association (BSSA), was chief guest of the programme.
Jalaluddin Md. Shoyeb, secretary of BSSA and former chief scientific officer of Soil Research and Development Institute (SRDI) presented key notes of the topic.
Among others Omar Ali Sheikh, additional director of Directorate of Agriculture Extension (DAE), Dr. Alamgir Hossain, chief scientific officer of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) Barisal office and other teachers and students of the department participated in the discussion.
The speakers and participants said soil is the basis for food, feed, and fuel and fibre production and for services to ecosystems and human well-being. It is the reservoir for at least a quarter of global biodiversity, and therefore requires the same attention as above-ground biodiversity.
Soils play a key role in the supply of clean water and resilience to floods and droughts. The largest store of terrestrial carbon is in the soil so that its preservation may contribute to climate change adaptation and mitigation.
The maintenance or enhancement of global soil resources is essential if humanity’s need for food, water, and energy security is to be met, they added.
Soils have been neglected for too long. We fail to connect soil with our food, water, climate, biodiversity and life. We must invert this tendency and take up some preserving and restoring actions, the participants noticed.
The importance of soil as a critical component of the natural system and as a vital contributor to the human commonwealth through its contribution to food, water and energy security and as a mitigator of biodiversity loss and climate change, they told.
The participants also compiling their six-point suggestions called to adapt policy for soil management and using soil in best way and utility, execution of sustainable planning for using soil to boost agricultural production and ensuring food security and maintain environment and biodiversity.
