Soils
This sector deals with questions related to all aspects concerning soil as a natural resource. Soils are strongly influenced by climate and hydrology. Their physical and chemical properties (e.g. field capacity, soil moisture content, hydraulic conductivity and fertility) are of outstanding importance for agriculture.
Soils, as a component of an ecosystem service, provide a multitude of benefits for urban and rural settlements. They are used for food production, as retention areas in case of floods, as building ground for settlements and for recreational purposes. They also serve as cold air producers or carbon sinks. The use of fertile soils as building construction sites is a severe problem in fast growing metropolitan regions like e.g. Grand Casablanca, where the need for food production is in conflict with the rapidly increasing need for housing and infrastructure.
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