In response to an emerging need to better understand soils as key deliverers of these vital services, the make-up of the soil science research community has been transformed. Soil science has arguably shifted from a discipline largely concerned with the fundamental mechanics of soil systems (soil physics, soil biology, soil chemistry, soil hydrology, etc), to one more focused on confronting contemporary environmental challenges.
The importance of, and need to understand, the components of soil systems has not been made redundant, but more and more fundamental soil science is being translated into applied “real-world” solutions.
See the full article in the European Journal of Soil Science.