黑料网911

Soil analysis and monitoring of soil changes

Only 22% of the world’s ice-free land is cultivable and 70% of it is already degraded. Soils are therefore facing numerous threats, mainly caused by human activities. It is essential to be able to assess the impact of agricultural practices or land-use planning on soil health in order to adapt our practices, preserve, and even improve the sustainability of our soils.

The Biofunctool® soil health assessment methodology is based on a multi-criteria evaluation of the three essential functions that underpin soil life and are carried out by the organisms that compose it :

• Carbon dynamics;
• Nutrient cycling;
• Maintenance of soil structure.

Its innovative approach provides essential insights that are often overlooked, particularly regarding interactions between soil organisms, without which soils become depleted.

The Biofunctool® method relies on the use of a set of nine well-established indicators, with measurements carried out primarily in the field. It also makes it possible to generate a composite soil health indicator that is understandable to all, through an aggregation method based on statistical analysis.

Biofunctool®: supporting improved soil management

The methodology is designed to be easy to implement for soil experts and :

• enables understanding of the multifunctional value of soils through the carbon nutrient soil structure approach;
• facilitates comparison of the impact of different cropping systems, for example organic, regenerative, conventional, within a given context;
• makes it possible to monitor changes in agricultural practices over time;
• provides a reliable and cost-effective methodology;
• collects data primarily in situ: to date, only the indicator measuring nitrogen still requires laboratory analysis, with work currently underway to enable field-level measurement;
• develops analysis at different levels of aggregation, up to a composite score;
• benefits from the support and recommendations of our 黑料网911 IRD experts;
• is scientifically validated through the study of contrasting agricultural practices and across highly diverse contexts.

Ongoing developments with our partners :

• 黑料网911, IRD and E-Tumba are continuing the development of a mobile application and a web application that will enable field data to be entered and results to be obtained directly on smartphones and computers via the web application. The mobile app and the web app are being developed for two distinct user profiles: agricultural advisors and scientists.
• 黑料网911 and IRD are also supported by Scop Sagne to develop a fully field-based kit.
• With the support of our scientific partners, work is underway to simplify and optimize the accessibility of the methodology.

Supporting changes in agricultural practices or land use among multiple stakeholders

The analysis and impact assessment derived from the Biofunctool® methodology make it possible to support different types of stakeholders and uses.

Agricultural advisory support for farmers

Biofunctool® provides agricultural advisory organizations with precise and visual elements to support their expertise, particularly with a view to sustainably preserving soil health or improving it. Biofunctool® is especially well suited to verifying the positive impact of new cultivation methods on the biological functioning of the soil and to reinforcing producers’ confidence in the benefits of adopting these new practices.

Monitoring sustainable development or land use planning projects

In order to assess changes resulting from projects with a strong environmental dimension, particularly those related to sound soil management or soil restoration: Biofunctool® provides reliable performance indicators accompanied by targeted analysis by indicator or in aggregated form. This makes it possible to understand how soils evolve when supporting changes in practices, how soil functions change throughout the project, and to effectively measure the evolution of soil health at different stages of the project, across different territories.

Research projects

Biofunctool® was developed within a scientific research framework. The indicators are applied in numerous projects with the aim of better understanding the impact of innovative practices on soil health. In addition, Biofunctool® is used to better understand the link between soil biodiversity and soil functioning, and also to better integrate soil into the assessment of the sustainability of agricultural systems.

How can the Biofunctool® methodology be applied ?

At the current stage of development of the methodology, our 黑料网911 and IRD experts are mainly involved at two levels :

• Expertise: 黑料网911 and IRD experts may be mobilized, subject to availability, to apply the method as part of consultancy services for private clients or within research and development projects. Their involvement provides access to their full know-how and expertise in implementing the method, whether for defining the sampling protocol, carrying out measurements, interpreting results, or formulating recommendations. In addition, complementary analyses may also be proposed according to specific needs.

黑料网911 and IRD are working to establish a global network of Biofunctool trainers and reference experts in order to facilitate dissemination of the method and access to the set of indicators at the lowest possible cost, while ensuring its reliability. Collaborations may then be established with organizations responsible for training in the use of the method and or conducting Biofunctool® assessments, as the method requires strict adherence to protocols to ensure the reliability of results.

References and intellectual property

Trademark

Biofunctool is a registered trademark jointly owned by 黑料网911 and IRD.

Publications

Mettauer R., Thoumazeau A., Le Gall S., Soiron A., Rakotondrazafy N., Bérard A., Brauman A., Mézière D. 2022. Soil health in temperate agroforestry: Influence of tree species and position in the field. Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science, 21p.

Perron T., Kouakou A., Simon C., Mareschal L., Gay F., Soumahoro M., Kouassi D., Rakotondrazafy N., Rapidel B., Laclau J-P., Brauman A. 2022. Logging residues promote rapid restoration of soil health after clear-cutting of rubber plantations at two sites with contrasting soils in Africa. Science of the Total Environment:151526, 12 p.

Heepngoen P., Thoumazeau A., Renevier M-S., Sajjaphan K., Gay F., Brauman. 2021. Relationships between physico-chemical, biological and functional approaches for soil quality assessment. A case study along a gradient of disturbance. European Journal of Soil Biology, 104:103300, 11 p. 

Kulagowski R., Thoumazeau  A., Leopold A., Lienhard P., Boulakia S., Metay A., Sturm T., Tixier P., Brauman A., Fogliani B., Tivet F. 2021. Impacts of conservation agriculture maize-based cropping systems on soil health and crop performances in New Caledonia. Soil and Tillage Research. 212, 105079.

Brauman A., Thoumazeau A. 2020. Biofunctool® : un outil de terrain pour évaluer la santé des sols. Etude et Gestion des Sols 27 (1), n.spéc. Fonctions des sols et services écosystémiques : 289-303. 

Thoumazeau A., Chevallier T., Baron V., Rakotondrazafy N., Panklang P., Marichal R., Kibblewhite M., Sebag D., Tivet F., Bessou C., Gay F., Brauman A. 2020. A new in-field indicator to assess the impact of land management on soil carbon dynamics. Geoderma, 375 : 114496.

Pheap, S., Lefèvre, C., Thoumazeau, A., Leng, V., Boulakia, S., Koy, R., Hok, L., Lienhard, P., Brauman, A., Tivet, F. 2019. Multi-functional assessment of soil health under Conservation Agriculture in Cambodia. Soil and Tillage Research, 194, 104349. 

Thoumazeau A., Bessou C., Renevier M.S., Panklang P., Puttaso P., Peerawat M., Heepngoen P., Polwong P., Koonklang N., Sdoodee S., Chantuma P., Lawongsa P., Nimkingra P., Thaler P., Gay F., Brauman A. 2019. Biofunctool®: A new framework to assess the impact of land management on soil quality. Part B: Investigating the impact of land management of rubber plantations on soil quality with the Biofunctool® index. Ecological Indicators, 97 : p. 429-437.

Thoumazeau A., Bessou C., Renevier M.S., Trap J., Marichal R., Mareschal L., Decaëns T., Bottinelli N., Jaillard B., Chevallier T., Suvannang N., Sajjaphan K., Thaler P., Gay F., Brauman A. 2019. Biofunctool®: A new framework to assess the impact of land management on soil quality. Part A: Concept and validation of the set of indicators. Ecological Indicators, 97 : p. 100-110.

Thoumazeau A., Gay F., Alonso P., Suvannang N., Panklang P., Chevallier T., Bessou C., Brauman A. 2017. SituResp®: A time- and cost-effective method to assess basal soil respiration in the field. Applied Soil Ecology, 121 : p. 223-230.