Before

Monitor and control soil quality within the regulatory norms

Growing populations increase the need for a better handling of our earth’s resources. Soil is a vitally important resource that supports approximately 90% of all human food, livestock feed, fiber and fuel requirements. Furthermore, soil is increasingly recognized as an important sink for atmospheric CO2 that can help offset greenhouse gas emissions due to the burning of fossil fuels. Unfortunately, soil is not renewable and readily suffers from erosion, contamination, acidification and degradation below that required to support profitable cultivation. For these reasons there is increasing pressure on governments to pass protective legislation and promote best practices for the sustainable exploitation of soil.

Soil chemistry is an important parameter for gauging the fertility of soils, particularly the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and trace heavy metal content. In natural, uncultivated soils, the concentration of these elements depends on biological activity and the composition of the underlying geology. However, in cultivated soils tilling, heavy cropping and fertilization can radically change soil composition.

X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy is a powerful analytical tool that can obtain useful elemental information to maximize crop growth and ensure product and environmental safety.

After

Soil is life

Life on earth depends on healthy soil: to grow almost all our food, many of our fibers – and increasingly, our biofuels too. But soil is non-renewable. If it gets stripped of its goodness, nothing will grow. Then it’s game over.

In the wild, natural processes balance the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and trace metals that make soil fertile. But commercially cultivated soils need careful monitoring and regulating to stay healthy and productive.

X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy lets you understand your soil’s exact elemental mix – so you can keep it safe, fertile and as productive as possible.