Preparing for the EU Soil Framework Directive by optimal use of Information and Communication Technology across Europe

Project information

Preparing for the EU Soil Framework Directive by optimal use of Information and Communication Technology across Europe

Call: Integrated ICT and automation for sustainable agricultural production

Id: 34780

Acronym: Predictor

Duration: 
22 March, 2011 to 21 March, 2013

Consortium:
No Partner Contact Country Total
1000€
Funded
1000€
Funder
1 Coord.Department of Agroecology
Aarhus University
Per SchjønningDenmark147.9121.9Danish AgriFish Agency
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
2AgroTech A/SJørgen PedersenDenmark6.76.7Danish AgriFish Agency
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
3Soil Fertility and Soil Protection
Natural Resources and Agriculture
Agricultural Economics and Engineering
Agroscope Reckenholz-Taenikon Research Station ART
Thomas KellerSwitzerland102.29.0Federal Office for Agriculture - Bundesamt für Landwirtschaft
4Agrifood Technology
Technology & Food Science Unit
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (ILVO)
Matthias StettlerSwitzerland66.648.4Federal Office for Agriculture - Bundesamt für Landwirtschaft
5Department of Agricultural Sciences
University of Helsinki
Laura AlakukkuFinland62.844.5Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
6VTT Technical Research Centre of FinlandHarri LiljaFinland38.222.6Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
7Soil Science Centre
Alterra Wageningen UR
Jan J.H. van den AkkerNetherlands9.00.0None
8University of Copenhagen
Henrik Breuning-MadsenDenmark10.710.7Danish AgriFish Agency
Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
9University Halle - Institut of crop scienceOlaf ChristenGermany5.00.0None


Summary: 

The PredICTor project has two main deliverables, i) an online decision support tool for evaluating an intended field traffic situation for a given soil condition and with given machinery (for farmers and agricultural advisers), and ii) an online tool for creating European-wide maps of the wheel load carrying capacity, which is defined as the maximum wheel load the soil can carry at given soil moisture conditions and for a given tyre and tyre inflation pressure (for authorities / soil protection offices). For both of these ICT applications, we update state-of-the-art models for the soil compaction process and combine them with national and European databases on soil properties and (at national level) meteorological data.

Impact: 

Soil quality is threatened by traffic with modern agricultural machinery. The PredICTor project had as its main deliverable an online decision support tool for assessing the risk of compaction for an intended field traffic situation (Terranimo®). Terranimo® is a web-based computer model primarily designed for farmers, agricultural contractors, consultants, and enforcement authorities, but has scientific applications as well. Terranimo® can help in optimising the use of agricultural machinery in the field and in preventing damage to the soil structure by indicating conditions under which there is a high risk of harmful compaction. The tool exists in two versions that can be accessed at www.terranimo.dk and www.terranimo.ch, respectively. The former version can be run in eight languages and provides access to six national sub-versions with their respective typical default soil types (Denmark, Norway, United Kingdom, France, Belgium-Flanders and Finland). In addition, a sub-version provides typical FAO-defined soil types. Since the summer of 2013, the latter version of Terranimo® has been the official tool in Switzerland for evaluating the soil compaction risk in the scope of the “Soil Protection in Agriculture” implementation guidance of the Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG) and of the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN). The potential use of Terranimo® in policy options to mitigate the soil compaction threat was mentioned in a policy brief recently produced at the conclusion of the EU project RECARE (https://www.ecologic.eu/sites/files/publ ication/2018/2730_recare_subsoilcompaction_ web.pdf). The Terranimo® websites have been visited by more than 15,000 users in 2018 (~6,500 and ~9,000 for the .dk and .ch versions, respectively).

Share your opinion: Add new comment