Cross Institute Programme for Sustainable Soil Function
Country: United Kingdom
Start Date:           Duration:          Project Type: 
Contract Number: 
Organisation Type:  University research group / research institute
Topics: 
Soil-->Soil Overview
Project objectives: 
The aim of Programme is to provide scientific excellence in fundamental soil science through the establishment of a multidisciplinary centre. We endeavour 
to add significantly to the body of scientific  knowledge required to design and confidently predict the outcome of management practices  that will maintain 
or enhance soil quality, as defined by fitness for current  and future land use, while also adapting to or minimising local and global  change.
Project Summary: 
  
      
  
  
In the longer term we aim to develop the Programme's capacity to ensure that it has the infrastructure, resources and expertise to be able to meet future research 
needs for soils. This will involve investment in hardware and a long-term commitment to such basic elements as scientific expertise in biology, chemistry 
and physics, long-term experiments (e.g. Broadbalk, Rowden), and sample archives, the latter two elements having demonstrated their value time and time 
again.      
  
      
Our vision is for the Programme to be seen by those inside and outside the Institutes as the UK’s centre for leading edge research on the 
sustainable function of soils within managed landscapes, through the synchronisation and integration of current CSG research programmes at the three institutes, 
facilitating multidisciplinary research and increasing competitive capability for Defra and other funders.
  
      
  
  
In 2002 the BBSRC published its report Review of BBSRC-Funded Research  Relevant to Sustainable Agriculture. The recommendations in the report 
included “…the development of mechanisms to  integrate institute strategic spend among relevant BBSRC institutes…”. Our  vision is for SoilCIP to  be seen as 
the flagship for this integration,  bringing together BBSRC-funded research at Rothamsted Research  (including soil physics relocated from Silsoe Research 
Institute) and the  Institute for Grassland and Environmental Research, and drawing into this other  relevant research in the UK.
  
      
The mission of SoilCIP is to conduct leading-edge, generic  research into the biology, chemistry and physics of soils that will  significantly 
advance our understanding of the factors that contribute to soil  resilience and its ability to sustain vital functions in managed landscapes across  a range 
of scales, providing  strategic knowledge to the sectoral interests of SoilCIP.
  
      
 The overall objective is integrated, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research into soil science, focusing on the current 
need to develop integrated environmental research, i.e. soils, air, water, plants and animals. Generic research is carried out where appropriate to underpin 
the overall objective.
Achieved Objectives:
Product Descriptions: 
Project outpits link: http://www.sustainablesoilcip.org.uk/pap ...
Additional Information:
Project Resources:
Weblink:
http://www.sustainablesoilcip.org.uk/index.htm
Funding Programme(s): 
Link to Organisations:

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Submitted by: EUGRIS Team Professor Paul Bardos  Who does what?  26/07/2007 13:58:00