Project aims to improve understanding of subsoil in maintaining crucial soil health in the face of climate change
Agtech data service provider Varda has joined a four-year, €6m project to conduct extensive subsoil sampling across European countries. The DeepHorizon project, funded by Horizon Europe, aims to better understand the qualities, importance and function of subsoil in maintaining crucial soil health in the face of climate change.
Varda has developed SoilHive, an innovative platform to facilitate access to public and private soil data, on a global scale. As part of the DeepHorizon project, Varda will support the consortium in data management and facilitate data sharing and discoverability.
This will involve extending existing ontologies to include subsoil domains and functions, enabling data sharing across different stakeholders, creating the first European-level subsoil dataset, and enhancing SoilHive to improve the discovery of subsoil data, including the ability to search data at the horizon level.
The 16 companies and universities that form the DeepHorizon Consortium will together address the critical issue of subsoil degradation in Europe caused by unsustainable land management practices and climate change.
According to Varda, subsoils are currently largely unexplored and neglected despite their vital role in ecosystem health. “They contribute significantly to carbon storage, water retention, nutrient cycling, and overall soil fertility. Understanding and managing subsoils is crucial for sustainable agriculture, climate change mitigation, and maintaining biodiversity,” the company said.
“Enhanced research and investment in subsoil studies can unlock their potential to support resilient ecosystems and secure long-term environmental benefits. DeepHorizon aims to explore subsoils’ potential through data collection, modelling, and stakeholder collaboration.”
Simone Sala, director of soil and ecosystem solutions at Varda, commented: “Subsoil degradation is a huge challenge and continues to be exacerbated by factors including climate change and land management practices. We’re proud to be joining the DeepHorizon Consortium to bring greater transparency to soil data and help to protect the future of our soils”.
Varda’s SoilHive serves as a centralised repository where researchers can access a wealth of information on soil, nutrient levels, chemical composition, and more. By sharing insights, data, and research findings, researchers, scientists, and governments can collectively contribute to a more holistic understanding of soil-related issues and work towards innovative solutions.
“In our fight against climate change, collaboration will be essential, which is why it is one of the key pillars of everything we do at Varda. We hope that this project will showcase the power of collective strength and act as a catalyst for positive, impactful change across Europe and beyond,” Sala said.
Professor Mathieu Javaux, from the Earth and Life Institute at UCLouvain, said: “A unique aspect of DeepHorizon is its holistic view of soil functioning at the scale of the entire soil profile, from the surface to the deepest layers.
“As coordinator of DeepHorizon, I am very hopeful that by bringing together scientists and companies from different horizons and with different expertise, we will be able to improve the understanding of how the soil system works and provide stakeholders with new tools to manage the subsoil and improve its health.”
