Novel Metrics and Regenerative Pathways for Securing Soil

Abstract

Soil is a complex, dynamic, self-organising system that underpins life on Earth. It is under increasing pressure as more food must be produced from less land, driving widespread human-induced degradation. Soil erosion is a major contributor, causing nutrient and SOC loss, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, sedimentation, and pollution. Mitigating soil degradation requires systematic assessment and restoration approaches. The concept of soil security offers a structured framework but requires robust metrics and regenerative pathways. This thesis addresses this gap by introducing two metrics Soil Erosion Risk Capability (ERC) and the Soil Erosion Footprint and proposing regenerative pathways through an exergy model and a conceptual perspective on Quantum Soil Science. ERC quantifies the gap between a soil’s inherent erosion resistance and its erosion-altered state using a Capacity-Condition Framework based on genosoil, phenosoil, and pedogenon concepts. Applied across New South Wales (NSW), Australia, results indicate that northwest and coastal regions under intensive dryland cropping and grazing exhibit high erosion risk and lower capability to withstand future erosion. A generalised soil footprint framework is developed using threat to soil, soil service ratio, and inherent mitigation capability. Two erosion footprints were calculated across NSW; oats showed the highest footprints, while wheat, barley, and legumes were lower. AWC-related footprints were highest in coastal dryland areas and lowest in irrigated systems. An exergy model quantifies the energy required to restore SOC to its reference state. Pedogenons with larger SOC gaps and lower recovery rates exhibited the highest exergy demand. The thesis also explores quantum-informed perspectives in soil management, examining whether processes such as tunnelling and coherence may contribute to soil formation and resilience.