Notes
Año 9 No.25 Enero - Abril 2023
The soil is much more than the place where the plants grow
Departamento de Investigación en Ciencias Agrícolas, Instituto de Ciencias, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla.
Bio
Posgrado en Ciencias Ambientales, Instituto de Ciencias, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla.
Bio
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2093-8122
Bio
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Submitted
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February 14, 2023
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Published
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March 2, 2023
Abstract
Soils constitute an essential element for the functioning of ecosystems; they support human activities such as food production and support for construction; all their "services" are considered by soil scientists as functions that go beyond the provision of welfare for societies since they provide multiple benefits within ecosystems. Multiple models, equations, and software have been devised for the evaluation of these functions; in addition, they have been represented through cartography, which allows us to know their distribution. Understanding how soils function and what benefits they provide, not only for the benefit of society but also within the ecosystem itself, allows for their adequate valuation and use. The objective of this paper is to explain the different soil functions, their benefits for ecosystems and human populations, and how they can be evaluated to favor the conservation of natural resources and at the same time provide compensation to those who conserve ecosystems.
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