{"type": "FeatureCollection", "features": [{"id": "10.5281/zenodo.14845588", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:22:07Z", "type": "Dataset", "title": "Data from: Comparison and evaluation of sampling and eDNA metabarcoding protocols to assess soil biodiversity in Belgian LUCAS Biopoints", "description": "Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding is emerging as a novel tool for monitoring soil biodiversity. Soil biodiversity, critical for soil health and ecosystem services, is currently under-monitored due to the lack of standardized and efficient methods. We assessed whether refinements to sampling and molecular protocols could improve soil biodiversity detection and monitoring.\u00a0Comparing the 2018 LUCAS soil biodiversity protocols with newly developed national methods, we tested sampling topsoil (0-10 cm) versus deeper layers, larger soil sample sizes for DNA-extraction, taking more subsamples for composite soil samples, and alternative primer sets across 9 Belgian Biopoints included in the LUCAS 2022 survey. The results suggest that significantly more species can be detected in upper soil layers, including the forest floor, while the diversity of taxa and eDNA in the 10\u201330 cm soil layer is insufficient for annelids and arthropods to serve as indicators of ecological change. Additionally, comparison of the universal eukaryotic primers (18S) with primer sets tailored to soil mesofauna and macrofauna, showed that universal 18S primers provide limited resolution for Collembola and Annelida. Overall, the analyses suggest that vertical soil stratification (with two sampling depths) has a greater influence on the captured diversity of soil mesofauna and macrofauna than the number of subsamples, and that the highest diversity is recovered when surface sampling (0\u201310 cm topsoil and forest floor) is combined with a greater number of subsamples and a larger sampled area. With refinement and standardization, eDNA metabarcoding, combined with optimized sampling protocols, could become a powerful and efficient tool for monitoring soil biodiversity in European soils.  Description of the files  This dataset includes interactive Krona taxonomy charts to visually summarize the diversity and relative read abundance of detected taxa across sampling locations and protocols. Each ring in the chart represents a taxonomic level, with the relative width of segments reflecting the proportion of reads assigned to specific taxa at that level. These charts enable exploration of taxonomic composition and allow for comparisons between the different sampled locations, sampling protocols tested, and primer sets tested. All krona charts were made in R using psadd::plot_krona. To correct for uneven sequencing depth per sample, datasets were rarefied using a random subsampling method to 27913, 31655, 1856, 19728, and 19632 reads for Annelida (Olig01), Collembola (Coll01), Fungi (ITS9mun/ITS4ngsUni), protists (18S), and Archaea (SSU1ArF/SSU1000ArR) respectively. Fauna datasets that are subsets of the total data recovered by a primer set designed to target many different phyla (e.g. 18S) were not rarefied prior to generating the krona plots.      ejp_soil_annelida_olig01_27913.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Annelida. The data was generated using the group-specific Olig01 primer set and rarefied to 27,913 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_collembola_coll01_31655.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Collembola. The data was generated using the group-specific Coll01 primer set and rarefied to 31,655 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_arthropoda_inse01.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Arthropoda (Insecta, Arachnida, Chilopoda, Diplura, and Malacostraca). The data was generated using the Inse01 primer set.     ejp_soil_fungi_its9mun_its4ngsuni_1856.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Fungi. The data was generated using the ITS9mun and ITS4ngsUni primer set and rarefied to 1,856 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_protists_18s_19728.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for protists. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set and rarefied to 19,728 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_archaea_ssu1arf_ssu1000arr_19632.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Archaea. The data was generated using the SSU1ArF and SSU1000ArR primer set and rarefied to 19,632 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_annelida_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Annelida. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_collembola_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Collembola. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_arthropoda_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Arthropoda. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_metadata.csv contains metadata for the samples in this study. It includes information about the sampling locations, the sampling protocols used, the sampling depth (cm), land use type, EUNIS habitat classification, and the LUCAS-ID for each sample.", "keywords": ["soil monitoring", "metabarcoding", "LUCAS", "soil biodiversity", "eDNA"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Lambrechts, Sam, Deflem, Io Sarah, Sensalari, Cecilia, De Backer, Silke, De Beer, Berdien, Neyrinck, Sabrina, De Vos, Bruno,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14845588"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.14845588", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.14845588", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.14845588"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2025-02-10T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1016/j.agee.2024.108907", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:15:30Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-01-26", "title": "Soil bulk density assessment in Europe", "description": "The\u00a0topsoil\u00a0Land Use and Cover Area frame Statistical survey (LUCAS) aims at collecting harmonised data about the state of soil health over the extent of European Union (EU). In the LUCAS 2018 survey, bulk density has been analysed for three depths, i.e., 0\u201310\u202fcm = 6140 sites; 10\u201320\u202fcm = 5684 sites and 20\u201330\u202fcm =139 sites. The laboratory analysis and the assessment of the results conclude that the bulk density at 10\u201320\u202fcm is 5\u201310% higher compared to 0\u201310\u202fcm for all land uses except woodlands (20%). In the 0\u201320\u202fcm depth, croplands have 1.5 times higher bulk density (mean: 1.26\u202fg\u202fcm\u22123) compared to woodlands (mean: 0.83\u202fg\u202fcm\u22123). The main driver for bulk density variation is the land use which implies that many existing pedotransfer rules have to be developed based on land use. This study applied a methodological framework using an advanced Cubist rule-based regression model to optimize the spatial prediction of bulk density in Europe. We spatialised the circa 6000 LUCAS samples and developed the high-resolution map (100\u202fm) of bulk density for the 0\u201320\u202fcm depth and the maps at 0\u201310 and 10\u201320\u202fcm depth. The modelling results showed a very good prediction (R2: 0.66) of bulk density for the 0\u201320\u202fcm depth which outperforms previous assessments. The bulk density maps can be used to estimate packing density which is a proxy to estimate\u00a0soil compaction. Therefore, this work contributes to monitoring soil health and refine estimates on carbon and nutrients stocks in the EU\u00a0topsoil.", "keywords": ["550", "Packing density; Soil physics; Texture; Soil health; LUCAS; Soil compaction", "630"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Panagos, Panos, De Rosa, Daniele, Liakos, Leonidas, Labouyrie, Maeva, Borrelli, Pasquale, Ballabio, Cristiano,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2024.108907"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Agriculture%2C%20Ecosystems%20%26amp%3B%20Environment", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1016/j.agee.2024.108907", "name": "item", "description": "10.1016/j.agee.2024.108907", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1016/j.agee.2024.108907"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-04-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.117027", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:16:24Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-09-14", "title": "Comparing LUCAS Soil and national systems: Towards a harmonized European Soil monitoring network", "description": "Open AccessPeer reviewed", "keywords": ["Europe", "Science", "Soil health", "Q", "Soil monitoring", "Soil monitoring ; Soil health ; Policies ; Europe ; LUCAS Soil", "[SDV.SA.SDS]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Agricultural sciences/Soil study", "[SDV.SA.SDS] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Agricultural sciences/Soil study", "Policies", "630", "LUCAS Soil"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.117027"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Geoderma", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.117027", "name": "item", "description": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.117027", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.117027"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-09-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116862", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:16:24Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-03-27", "title": "Is the organic carbon-to-clay ratio a reliable indicator of soil health?", "description": "Climate action plans under the Paris Climate Agreement and other national commitments aimed at improving soil-based ecosystem services require the operational monitoring of soil carbon (C). The European Union is aiming to enhance soil health, and as part of the proposed Soil Monitoring Law, the European Commission recommends the monitoring of the soil C loss indicator among other soil health indicators. In this study, we evaluate the feasibility of the proposed soil C loss indicator by assessing its performance using the EU-wide 2009 LUCAS soil survey data. The proposed indicator is the soil organic carbon (SOC) to clay ratio, with a threshold value of 1:13. The results are also compared with the C stock changes reported by countries to the climate convention (UNFCCC). Our results reveal that the variation in SOC and clay content at European scale exceeds that of the data used to develop the proposed indicator. We also found that the variation in the SOC content was influenced not only by clay content but also by climate and land-use reflecting C input levels. Therefore, the defined threshold is inadequate for detecting degraded soils if the SOC and clay content are beyond the conditions used to establish the criteria. Furthermore, major discrepancies were observed between the soil carbon stock changes reported by the national greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories and the proportions of degraded soils identified by using the soil C loss indicator. We conclude that employing a single indicator such as SOC:Clay ratio with one threshold value for all soils across various land covers, management practices, and climatic conditions, as defined by the European Commission for the Soil Monitoring Law, is inappropriate for monitoring soil C loss.", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "agricultural soil", "550", "Forest soil", " agricultural soil", "Science", "Q", "Soil organic carbon (SOC)", "Soil monitoring", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "SOC:Clay ratio", "15. Life on land", "forest soil", "01 natural sciences", "630", "6. Clean water", "12. Responsible consumption", "soil organic carbon", "13. Climate action", "soil monitoring", "LUCAS soil survey", "11. Sustainability", "soc:clay ratio", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "European mineral soils", "0105 earth and related environmental sciences"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116862"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Geoderma", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116862", "name": "item", "description": "10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116862", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116862"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-01-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.3390/land11091397", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:20:28Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2022-08-26", "title": "Evaluation of Accuracy Enhancement in European-Wide Crop Type Mapping by Combining Optical and Microwave Time Series", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>This investigation evaluates the potential of combining Copernicus Sentinel-1 (S1) and Sentinel-2 (S2) satellite data in producing a detailed Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) map with 19 crop type classes and 2 broader categories containing Woodland/Shrubland and Grassland over 28 Member States of Europe (EU-28). The Eurostat Land Use and Coverage Area Frame Survey (LUCAS) 2018 dataset is employed as ground truth for model training and validation. Monthly and yearly optical features from S2 spectral reflectance and spectral indices, alongside decadal (10-days) composites from an S1 microwave sensor, are extracted for the EU-28 territory for 2018 using Google Earth Engine (GEE). Five different feature sets using a mixture of indicators were created as input training data. A Random Forest (RF) machine learning algorithm was applied to classify these feature sets, and the generated classification models were compared using an identical validation dataset. Results show that S1 and S2 yearly features together are able to provide a full coverage map less dependent on cloud effects and having appropriate overall accuracy (OA). Based on this feature set, the 21 classes could be classified with an OA of 78.3% using the independent validation data set. The OA increases to 82.7% by grouping 21 classes into 8 broader categories. The comparison with similar studies using individual S1 and S2 data indicates that combining S1 and S2 time series can attain slightly better results while enhancing spatial coverage.</p></article>", "keywords": ["LUCAS 2018", "S", "0211 other engineering and technologies", "Agriculture", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "02 engineering and technology", "15. Life on land", "crop type classification", "machine learning", "13. Climate action", "Sentinel-1", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "Sentinel-2", "time series", "Google Earth Engine"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/11/9/1397/pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/land11091397"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Land", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.3390/land11091397", "name": "item", "description": "10.3390/land11091397", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.3390/land11091397"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2022-08-25T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.2139/ssrn.4681574", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:19:58Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-03-27", "title": "Is the organic carbon-to-clay ratio a reliable indicator of soil health?", "description": "Climate action plans under the Paris Climate Agreement and other national commitments aimed at improving soil-based ecosystem services require the operational monitoring of soil carbon (C). The European Union is aiming to enhance soil health, and as part of the proposed Soil Monitoring Law, the European Commission recommends the monitoring of the soil C loss indicator among other soil health indicators. In this study, we evaluate the feasibility of the proposed soil C loss indicator by assessing its performance using the EU-wide 2009 LUCAS soil survey data. The proposed indicator is the soil organic carbon (SOC) to clay ratio, with a threshold value of 1:13. The results are also compared with the C stock changes reported by countries to the climate convention (UNFCCC). Our results reveal that the variation in SOC and clay content at European scale exceeds that of the data used to develop the proposed indicator. We also found that the variation in the SOC content was influenced not only by clay content but also by climate and land-use reflecting C input levels. Therefore, the defined threshold is inadequate for detecting degraded soils if the SOC and clay content are beyond the conditions used to establish the criteria. Furthermore, major discrepancies were observed between the soil carbon stock changes reported by the national greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories and the proportions of degraded soils identified by using the soil C loss indicator. We conclude that employing a single indicator such as SOC:Clay ratio with one threshold value for all soils across various land covers, management practices, and climatic conditions, as defined by the European Commission for the Soil Monitoring Law, is inappropriate for monitoring soil C loss.", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "agricultural soil", "550", "Forest soil", " agricultural soil", "Science", "Q", "Soil organic carbon (SOC)", "Soil monitoring", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "SOC:Clay ratio", "15. Life on land", "forest soil", "01 natural sciences", "630", "6. Clean water", "12. Responsible consumption", "soil organic carbon", "13. Climate action", "soil monitoring", "LUCAS soil survey", "11. Sustainability", "soc:clay ratio", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "European mineral soils", "0105 earth and related environmental sciences"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4681574"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Geoderma", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.2139/ssrn.4681574", "name": "item", "description": "10.2139/ssrn.4681574", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.2139/ssrn.4681574"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-01-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.3390/rs14030541", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:20:34Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2022-01-24", "title": "Designing a European-Wide Crop Type Mapping Approach Based on Machine Learning Algorithms Using LUCAS Field Survey and Sentinel-2 Data", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>One of the most challenging aspects of obtaining detailed and accurate land-use and land-cover (LULC) maps is the availability of representative field data for training and validation. In this manuscript, we evaluate the use of the Eurostat Land Use and Coverage Area frame Survey (LUCAS) 2018 data to generate a detailed LULC map with 19 crop type classes and two broad categories for woodland and shrubland, and grassland. The field data were used in combination with Copernicus Sentinel-2 (S2) satellite data covering Europe. First, spatially and temporally consistent S2 image composites of (1) spectral reflectances, (2) a selection of spectral indices, and (3) several bio-geophysical indicators were created for the year 2018. From the large number of features, the most important were selected for classification using two machine-learning algorithms (support vector machine and random forest). Results indicated that the 19 crop type classes and the two broad categories could be classified with an overall accuracy (OA) of 77.6%, using independent data for validation. Our analysis of three methods to select optimum training data showed that by selecting the most spectrally different pixels for training data, the best OA could be achieved, and this already using only 11% of the total training data. Comparing our results to a similar study using Sentinel-1 (S1) data indicated that S2 can achieve slightly better results, although the spatial coverage was slightly reduced due to gaps in S2 data. Further analysis is ongoing to leverage synergies between optical and microwave data.</p></article>", "keywords": ["LUCAS 2018", "crop type classification", "crop type classification; random forest; support vector machine; LUCAS 2018", "Science", "Q", "0211 other engineering and technologies", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "support vector machine", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "02 engineering and technology", "15. Life on land", "random forest"]}, "links": [{"href": "http://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/14/3/541/pdf"}, {"href": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/14/3/541/pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14030541"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Remote%20Sensing", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.3390/rs14030541", "name": "item", "description": "10.3390/rs14030541", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.3390/rs14030541"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2022-01-23T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.3389/fenvs.2016.00047", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:20:13Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2016-06-21", "title": "High Nature Value Farmland: Assessment of Soil Organic Carbon in Europe", "description": "High Nature Value Farmland (HNVF) is commonly associated with low intensity agricultural systems. HNVFs cover ~32% of the agricultural land in Europe and are of strategic importance for the European Union policy since they are reservoirs of biodiversity and provide several ecosystem services. Carbon sequestration is an important service that can be supplied by HNVFs as addressed in this study. Considering soil carbon content as a proxy for soil carbon storage, we compare HNVFs with soils that undergo more conventional land management (nHNVFs) and study the consequences of diverse land uses and geographic regions as additional explanatory variables. The results of our research show that, at the European level, organic carbon content is higher in HNVF than in nHNVF. However, this difference is strongly affected by the type of land use and the geographic region. Rather than seeing HNVF and nHNVF as two sharply distinct categories, as for carbon storage potential, we provide indications that the interplay between soil type (HNVF or nHNVF), land use, and geographic region determines carbon content in soils.", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "330", "550", "land use", "Soil carbon storage", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "15. Life on land", "LUCAs dataset", "13. Climate action", "soil carbon storage", "Land use", "Environmental Science", "11. Sustainability", "Ecosystem services", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "HNV farmland", "ecosystem services"]}, "links": [{"href": "http://oceanrep.geomar.de/35086/1/Gardi_et_al_2016.pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2016.00047"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Frontiers%20in%20Environmental%20Science", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.3389/fenvs.2016.00047", "name": "item", "description": "10.3389/fenvs.2016.00047", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.3389/fenvs.2016.00047"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2016-06-21T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.5281/zenodo.8091840", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:22:58Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2022-08-26", "title": "Evaluation of Accuracy Enhancement in European-Wide Crop Type Mapping by Combining Optical and Microwave Time Series", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>This investigation evaluates the potential of combining Copernicus Sentinel-1 (S1) and Sentinel-2 (S2) satellite data in producing a detailed Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) map with 19 crop type classes and 2 broader categories containing Woodland/Shrubland and Grassland over 28 Member States of Europe (EU-28). The Eurostat Land Use and Coverage Area Frame Survey (LUCAS) 2018 dataset is employed as ground truth for model training and validation. Monthly and yearly optical features from S2 spectral reflectance and spectral indices, alongside decadal (10-days) composites from an S1 microwave sensor, are extracted for the EU-28 territory for 2018 using Google Earth Engine (GEE). Five different feature sets using a mixture of indicators were created as input training data. A Random Forest (RF) machine learning algorithm was applied to classify these feature sets, and the generated classification models were compared using an identical validation dataset. Results show that S1 and S2 yearly features together are able to provide a full coverage map less dependent on cloud effects and having appropriate overall accuracy (OA). Based on this feature set, the 21 classes could be classified with an OA of 78.3% using the independent validation data set. The OA increases to 82.7% by grouping 21 classes into 8 broader categories. The comparison with similar studies using individual S1 and S2 data indicates that combining S1 and S2 time series can attain slightly better results while enhancing spatial coverage.</p></article>", "keywords": ["LUCAS 2018", "S", "0211 other engineering and technologies", "Agriculture", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "02 engineering and technology", "15. Life on land", "crop type classification", "machine learning", "13. Climate action", "Sentinel-1", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "Sentinel-2", "time series", "Google Earth Engine"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/11/9/1397/pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8091840"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Land", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.8091840", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.8091840", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.8091840"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2022-08-25T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.5281/zenodo.8091863", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:22:58Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2022-01-23", "title": "Designing a European-Wide Crop Type Mapping Approach Based on Machine Learning Algorithms Using LUCAS Field Survey and Sentinel-2 Data", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>One of the most challenging aspects of obtaining detailed and accurate land-use and land-cover (LULC) maps is the availability of representative field data for training and validation. In this manuscript, we evaluate the use of the Eurostat Land Use and Coverage Area frame Survey (LUCAS) 2018 data to generate a detailed LULC map with 19 crop type classes and two broad categories for woodland and shrubland, and grassland. The field data were used in combination with Copernicus Sentinel-2 (S2) satellite data covering Europe. First, spatially and temporally consistent S2 image composites of (1) spectral reflectances, (2) a selection of spectral indices, and (3) several bio-geophysical indicators were created for the year 2018. From the large number of features, the most important were selected for classification using two machine-learning algorithms (support vector machine and random forest). Results indicated that the 19 crop type classes and the two broad categories could be classified with an overall accuracy (OA) of 77.6%, using independent data for validation. Our analysis of three methods to select optimum training data showed that by selecting the most spectrally different pixels for training data, the best OA could be achieved, and this already using only 11% of the total training data. Comparing our results to a similar study using Sentinel-1 (S1) data indicated that S2 can achieve slightly better results, although the spatial coverage was slightly reduced due to gaps in S2 data. Further analysis is ongoing to leverage synergies between optical and microwave data.</p></article>", "keywords": ["LUCAS 2018", "crop type classification", "crop type classification; random forest; support vector machine; LUCAS 2018", "Science", "Q", "0211 other engineering and technologies", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "support vector machine", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "02 engineering and technology", "15. Life on land", "random forest"]}, "links": [{"href": "http://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/14/3/541/pdf"}, {"href": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/14/3/541/pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8091863"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Remote%20Sensing", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.8091863", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.8091863", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.8091863"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2022-01-23T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.3390/su17031093", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:20:37Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2025-01-29", "title": "Microbial Bioindicators for Monitoring the Impact of Emerging Contaminants on Soil Health in the European Framework", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>Antibiotic resistance (AR) is recognized by the World Health Organization as a major threat to human health, and recent studies highlight the role of microplastics (MPs) in its spread. MPs in the environment may act as vectors for antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Bacterial communities on the plastisphere, the surface of MPs, are influenced by plastic properties, allowing ARB to colonize and form biofilms. These biofilms facilitate the transfer of ARGs within microbial communities. This study analyzed data from the LUCAS soil dataset (885 soil samples across EU countries) using the Emu tool to characterize microbial communities at the genus/species level. Functional annotation via PICRUSt2, supported by a custom tool for Emu output formatting, revealed significant correlations between the genera Solirubrobacter, Bradyrhizobium, Nocardioides, and Bacillus with pathways linked to microplastic degradation and antibiotic resistance. These genera were consistently present in various soil types (woodland, grassland, and cropland), suggesting their potential as bioindicators of soil health in relation to MP pollution. The findings underscore MPs as hotspots for ARB and ARGs, offering new insights into the identification of bioindicators for monitoring soil health and the ecological impacts related to MP contamination.</p></article>", "keywords": ["microplastics; antibiotic resistance genes; soil microbiome; LUCAS soil"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Andrea Visca, Luciana Di Gregorio, Manuela Costanzo, Elisa Clagnan, Lorenzo Nolfi, Roberta Bernini, Alberto Orgiazzi, Arwyn Jones, Francesco Vitali, Stefano Mocali, Annamaria Bevivino,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://air.unimi.it/bitstream/2434/1142151/2/sustainability-17-01093.pdf"}, {"href": "https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/3/1093/pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/su17031093"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Sustainability", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.3390/su17031093", "name": "item", "description": "10.3390/su17031093", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.3390/su17031093"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2025-01-29T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.5281/zenodo.14037350", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:21:53Z", "type": "Report", "title": "Indicators-based economic evaluation of soil policies", "description": "The internal EJP SOIL project\u00a0SERENA contributed to the evaluation of soil multifunctionality aiming at providing assessment tools for land planning and soil policies at different scales. By co-working with relevant\u00a0stakeholders, the project provided co-developed indicators and associated cookbooks to assess and map them, to report both on soil degradation, soil-based ecosystem services and their bundles, under actual conditions and for climate and land-use changes, at\u00a0the regional, national, and European scales  This reports investigates soil organic carbon (SOC) response to land-use changes (LUC)across Europe by integrating field data from the LUCAS survey with satellite-basedCorine Land Cover (CLC) data. Employing a dynamic approach, we observe thatSOC accumulation following conversions from cropland to grassland or forest is gradual(10\u201320 years) yet substantial, whereas SOC losses due to conversions to cropland aremore immediate (63% occurs within the first 1.5 years). We provide country-specificemission factors that enhance the precision of national greenhouse gas inventories. Ouranalysis of SOC changes since 1990 reveals significantly greater carbon sequestrationcompared to current national greenhouse gas inventory. These findings illustrate theneed for region-specific parameters to estimate SOC changes and provide a ready-madesolution for EU member states to comply with the LULUCF regulation on this aspect.", "keywords": ["Europe", "[SDE] Environmental Sciences", "SERENA project' 'EJPSOIL'; 'Grant n 862695'; D4.2/ WP4 /Task 4.2", "Corine land cover", "Soil carbon", "LUCAS Soil", "Land-use and land-cover change", "SERENA project' 'EJPSOIL'; 'Grant\u00a0 n 862695'; D4.2/ WP4 /Task 4.2"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Ay, Jean-Sauveur, Bellassen, Valentin, Diao, Liang,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14037350"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.14037350", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.14037350", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.14037350"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-01-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.5281/zenodo.14845589", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:22:07Z", "type": "Dataset", "title": "Data from: Comparison and evaluation of sampling and eDNA metabarcoding protocols to assess soil biodiversity in Belgian LUCAS Biopoints", "description": "Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding is emerging as a novel tool for monitoring soil biodiversity. Soil biodiversity, critical for soil health and ecosystem services, is currently under-monitored due to the lack of standardized and efficient methods. We assessed whether refinements to sampling and molecular protocols could improve soil biodiversity detection and monitoring.\u00a0Comparing the 2018 LUCAS soil biodiversity protocols with newly developed national methods, we tested sampling topsoil (0-10 cm) versus deeper layers, larger soil sample sizes for DNA-extraction, taking more subsamples for composite soil samples, and alternative primer sets across 9 Belgian Biopoints included in the LUCAS 2022 survey. The results suggest that significantly more species can be detected in upper soil layers, including the forest floor, while the diversity of taxa and eDNA in the 10\u201330 cm soil layer is insufficient for annelids and arthropods to serve as indicators of ecological change. Additionally, comparison of the universal eukaryotic primers (18S) with primer sets tailored to soil mesofauna and macrofauna, showed that universal 18S primers provide limited resolution for Collembola and Annelida. Overall, the analyses suggest that vertical soil stratification (with two sampling depths) has a greater influence on the captured diversity of soil mesofauna and macrofauna than the number of subsamples, and that the highest diversity is recovered when surface sampling (0\u201310 cm topsoil and forest floor) is combined with a greater number of subsamples and a larger sampled area. With refinement and standardization, eDNA metabarcoding, combined with optimized sampling protocols, could become a powerful and efficient tool for monitoring soil biodiversity in European soils.  Description of the files  This dataset includes interactive Krona taxonomy charts to visually summarize the diversity and relative read abundance of detected taxa across sampling locations and protocols. Each ring in the chart represents a taxonomic level, with the relative width of segments reflecting the proportion of reads assigned to specific taxa at that level. These charts enable exploration of taxonomic composition and allow for comparisons between the different sampled locations, sampling protocols tested, and primer sets tested. All krona charts were made in R using psadd::plot_krona. To correct for uneven sequencing depth per sample, datasets were rarefied using a random subsampling method to 27913, 31655, 1856, 19728, and 19632 reads for Annelida (Olig01), Collembola (Coll01), Fungi (ITS9mun/ITS4ngsUni), protists (18S), and Archaea (SSU1ArF/SSU1000ArR) respectively. Fauna datasets that are subsets of the total data recovered by a primer set designed to target many different phyla (e.g. 18S) were not rarefied prior to generating the krona plots.      ejp_soil_annelida_olig01_27913.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Annelida. The data was generated using the group-specific Olig01 primer set and rarefied to 27,913 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_collembola_coll01_31655.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Collembola. The data was generated using the group-specific Coll01 primer set and rarefied to 31,655 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_arthropoda_inse01.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Arthropoda (Insecta, Arachnida, Chilopoda, Diplura, and Malacostraca). The data was generated using the Inse01 primer set.     ejp_soil_fungi_its9mun_its4ngsuni_1856.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Fungi. The data was generated using the ITS9mun and ITS4ngsUni primer set and rarefied to 1,856 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_protists_18s_19728.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for protists. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set and rarefied to 19,728 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_archaea_ssu1arf_ssu1000arr_19632.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Archaea. The data was generated using the SSU1ArF and SSU1000ArR primer set and rarefied to 19,632 reads per sample.     ejp_soil_annelida_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Annelida. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_collembola_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Collembola. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_arthropoda_18s.html contains the interactive taxonomy charts for Arthropoda. The data was generated using the eukaryotic 18S primer set.     ejp_soil_metadata.csv contains metadata for the samples in this study. It includes information about the sampling locations, the sampling protocols used, the sampling depth (cm), land use type, EUNIS habitat classification, and the LUCAS-ID for each sample.", "keywords": ["soil monitoring", "metabarcoding", "LUCAS", "soil biodiversity", "eDNA"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Lambrechts, Sam, Deflem, Io Sarah, Sensalari, Cecilia, De Backer, Silke, De Beer, Berdien, Neyrinck, Sabrina, De Vos, Bruno,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14845589"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.14845589", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.14845589", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.14845589"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2025-02-10T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.5281/zenodo.15046019", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:22:12Z", "type": "Report", "title": "Comparison and evaluation of sampling and eDNA metabarcoding protocols to assess soil biodiversity in Belgian LUCAS Biopoints", "description": "Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding is emerging as a novel tool for monitoring soil biodiversity. Soil biodiversity, critical to soil health and ecosystem services, remains under-monitored due to the lack of standardized and efficient methods. We evaluated whether refinements to sampling protocols (for soil invertebrates and Fungi) and molecular protocols (for soil invertebrates) could improve biodiversity detection. Comparing the 2018 LUCAS soil biodiversity protocol with newly developed national methods, we tested sampling and sequencing surface layers (0-10 cm and forest floor) versus deeper layers, larger soil sample sizes for DNA-extraction, taking more subsamples for composite soil samples, and alternative primer sets across 9 Belgian Biopoints included in the LUCAS 2022 survey. We show that the choice of sampling protocol significantly influences soil biodiversity assessments. The results show that, based on eDNA, we are able to detect significantly more species when sampling and sequencing the upper soil layers separately, while the diversity in the 10\u201330 cm soil layer is insufficient for annelids and arthropods to serve as indicators of ecological changes. Collembola and Arthropoda richness and diversity generally increased towards less intensely managed soils, when using the national (Cmon), and to a lesser extent the European (LUCAS) sampling protocols. In contrast, sampling and sequencing the 10-30 cm layer failed to capture such a pattern. Overall, the analyses suggest that soil depth has a greater influence on the soil invertebrate diversity captured than sampling intensity, and that the highest diversity is recovered when surface sampling (0\u201310 cm topsoil and forest floor) is combined with a greater number of subsamples (16 compared to 5 in LUCAS) and a larger sampled area. Additionally, comparison of the universal eukaryotic primers (18S) with primer sets tailored to important soil invertebrate groups, showed that universal 18S primers provide limited resolution for Collembola and Annelida, making them less suitable for accurately assessing the diversity of these groups as a response variable in monitoring ecological changes and biological soil health. With refinement and standardization, eDNA metabarcoding, combined with optimized sampling protocols, could become a powerful and efficient tool for monitoring soil biodiversity in European soils.", "keywords": ["EJP SOIL", "soil monitoring", "metabarcoding", "LUCAS", "soil biodiversity", "eDNA"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15046019"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.5281/zenodo.15046019", "name": "item", "description": "10.5281/zenodo.15046019", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.5281/zenodo.15046019"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2025-03-18T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10261/368118", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:23:51Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-09-14", "title": "Comparing LUCAS Soil and national systems: Towards a harmonized European Soil monitoring network", "description": "A recent assessment states that 60\u201370% of soils in Europe are considered degraded. Protecting such valuable resource require knowledge on soil status through monitoring systems. In Europe, different types of monitoring networks currently exist in parallel. Many EU Member states (MS) developed their own national soil information monitoring system (N-SIMS), some being in place for decades. In parallel in 2009, the European Commission extended the periodic Land Use/Land Cover Area Frame Survey (LUCAS) led by EUROSTAT to sample and analyse the main properties of topsoil in EU in order to develop a homogeneous dataset for EU.Both sources of information are needed to support European policies on soil health evaluation. However, a question remains whether the assessment obtained by using soil properties from both monitoring programs (N-SIMS and LUCAS Soil) are comparable, and what could be the limitations of using either one dataset or the other.Conducted in the context of European Joint Programme (EJP) SOIL, this study shows the results of a comparison between N-SIMS and LUCAS Soil programs among 12 different EU member states including BE, DE, DK, EE, ES, FR, DE, HU, IT, NL, PL, SE and SK. The comparison was done on: (i) the sampling strategies including site densities, land cover and soil type distribution; (ii) the statistical distribution of three soil properties (organic carbon, pH and clay content); (iii) two potential indicators of soil quality (i.e. OC/Clay ratio and pH classes). The results underlined substantial differences in soil properties statistical distributions between N-SIMS and LUCAS Soil in many member states, particularly for woodland and grassland soils, affecting the evaluation of soil health using indicators. Such differences might be explained by both the monitoring strategy and sampling or analytical protocols exposing the potential effect of data source on European and national policies. The results demonstrate the need to work towards data harmonization and in the light of the Soil Monitoring Law, to carefully design the future of soil monitoring in Europe taking into account both LUCAS Soil and N-SIMS considering the significant impact of the monitoring strategies and protocols on soil health indicators.", "keywords": ["Europe", "Soil health", "Science", "Q", "Soil monitoring", "Soil monitoring ; Soil health ; Policies ; Europe ; LUCAS Soil", "[SDV.SA.SDS]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Agricultural sciences/Soil study", "[SDV.SA.SDS] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Agricultural sciences/Soil study", "Policies", "630", "LUCAS Soil"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10261/368118"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Geoderma", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10261/368118", "name": "item", "description": "10261/368118", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10261/368118"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-09-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "11381/2807483", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:24:06Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2016-06-21", "title": "High Nature Value Farmland: Assessment of Soil Organic Carbon in Europe", "description": "High Nature Value Farmland (HNVF) is commonly associated with low intensity agricultural systems. HNVFs cover ~32% of the agricultural land in Europe and are of strategic importance for the European Union policy since they are reservoirs of biodiversity and provide several ecosystem services. Carbon sequestration is an important service that can be supplied by HNVFs as addressed in this study. Considering soil carbon content as a proxy for soil carbon storage, we compare HNVFs with soils that undergo more conventional land management (nHNVFs) and study the consequences of diverse land uses and geographic regions as additional explanatory variables. The results of our research show that, at the European level, organic carbon content is higher in HNVF than in nHNVF. However, this difference is strongly affected by the type of land use and the geographic region. Rather than seeing HNVF and nHNVF as two sharply distinct categories, as for carbon storage potential, we provide indications that the interplay between soil type (HNVF or nHNVF), land use, and geographic region determines carbon content in soils.", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "330", "550", "land use", "Soil carbon storage", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "15. Life on land", "LUCAs dataset", "13. Climate action", "soil carbon storage", "Land use", "Environmental Science", "11. Sustainability", "Ecosystem services", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "HNV farmland", "ecosystem services"]}, "links": [{"href": "http://oceanrep.geomar.de/35086/1/Gardi_et_al_2016.pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/11381/2807483"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Frontiers%20in%20Environmental%20Science", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "11381/2807483", "name": "item", "description": "11381/2807483", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/11381/2807483"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2016-06-21T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "11563/181221", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:24:07Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-01-26", "title": "Soil bulk density assessment in Europe", "description": "The topsoil Land Use and Cover Area frame Statistical survey (LUCAS) aims at collecting harmonised data about the state of soil health over the extent of European Union (EU). In the LUCAS 2018 survey, bulk density has been analysed for three depths, i.e., 0-10 cm = 6140 sites; 10-20 cm = 5684 sites and 20-30 cm =139 sites. The laboratory analysis and the assessment of the results conclude that the bulk density at 10-20 cm is 5-10% higher compared to 0-10 cm for all land uses except woodlands (20%). In the 0-20 cm depth, croplands have 1.5 times higher bulk density (mean: 1.26 g cm -3) compared to woodlands (mean: 0.83 g cm -3). The main driver for bulk density variation is the land use which implies that many existing pedotransfer rules have to be developed based on land use. This study applied a methodological framework using an advanced Cubist rule-based regression model to optimize the spatial prediction of bulk density in Europe. We spatialised the circa 6000 LUCAS samples and developed the high -resolution map (100 m) of bulk density for the 0-20 cm depth and the maps at 0-10 and 10-20 cm depth. The modelling results showed a very good prediction (R2: 0.66) of bulk density for the 0-20 cm depth which outperforms previous assessments. The bulk density maps can be used to estimate packing density which is a proxy to estimate soil compaction. Therefore, this work contributes to monitoring soil health and refine estimates on carbon and nutrients stocks in the EU topsoil.", "keywords": ["550", "Packing density; Soil physics; Texture; Soil health; LUCAS; Soil compaction", "630"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Panagos, Panos, De Rosa, Daniele, Liakos, Leonidas, Labouyrie, Maeva, Borrelli, Pasquale, Ballabio, Cristiano,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/11563/181221"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Agriculture%2C%20Ecosystems%20%26amp%3B%20Environment", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "11563/181221", "name": "item", "description": "11563/181221", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/11563/181221"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-04-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "2434/1142151", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-05-24T16:24:46Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2025-01-29", "title": "Microbial Bioindicators for Monitoring the Impact of Emerging Contaminants on Soil Health in the European Framework", "description": "<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><article><p>Antibiotic resistance (AR) is recognized by the World Health Organization as a major threat to human health, and recent studies highlight the role of microplastics (MPs) in its spread. MPs in the environment may act as vectors for antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Bacterial communities on the plastisphere, the surface of MPs, are influenced by plastic properties, allowing ARB to colonize and form biofilms. These biofilms facilitate the transfer of ARGs within microbial communities. This study analyzed data from the LUCAS soil dataset (885 soil samples across EU countries) using the Emu tool to characterize microbial communities at the genus/species level. Functional annotation via PICRUSt2, supported by a custom tool for Emu output formatting, revealed significant correlations between the genera Solirubrobacter, Bradyrhizobium, Nocardioides, and Bacillus with pathways linked to microplastic degradation and antibiotic resistance. These genera were consistently present in various soil types (woodland, grassland, and cropland), suggesting their potential as bioindicators of soil health in relation to MP pollution. 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