The University of Georgia Costa Rica 2014-2015 Sustainability Report UGA Costa Rica 2014 - 2015 Sustainability Report | Page 41

Soils are more than just
the ground beneath our
feet. They are alive and
constantly changing.
implemented at the UGA Costa
Rica campus.
Soils are more than just the
ground beneath our feet.
They are alive and constantly
changing, with a single gram of
soil estimated to contain over
10,000 different species. All
of these organisms inhabit a
complex mixture of weathered
minerals, water, and decaying
organic materials. Completely
unseen to the naked eye,
soil microbial communities
metabolically convert organic
residues to carbon dioxide,
releasing nutrients such as
nitrogen and phosphorus in
mineral forms readily available
for plant uptake. Soil physical
structure is maintained through
the release of compounds by
different soil organisms that
enhance soil aggregation,
reducing erosional losses and
providing flood-mitigating
services. Soils also are one of
the largest carbon repositories,
storing more carbon than in the
atmosphere and in all terrestrial
life combined. Maintaining
biodiversity in soils ensures
that these processes are
allowed to continue regulating
and provisioning services for
human society. This is especially
important in an agriculturally
dependent region, such as San
Luis de Monteverde, where

economic livelihood is directly
tied to soil fertility.
Managing soils to maintaining
desired ecosystem services
requires knowledge of the natural
capital of the soil, as not all soils
are weathered equally. There are
12 broad soil orders across the
globe, each defined by different
physical and chemical properties,
with these properties impacting
potential land uses. Some soils,
due to the minerals and organic
matter present, can filter water
inputs more efficiently than
others. The highly weathered soils
of the tropics, like those of Costa
Rica, can have issues with nutrient
availability due to the ability of
the mineral phases present to lock
away phosphorus. While not all
soil properties can be impacted
by management, many can be
improved through knowledgeable
intervention. Added soil organic
material can increase soil water

holding capacity as well as
increase the ability of the soil
to hold on to nutrients for slow
release and uptake by plants
during the growing season.
Management efforts that enhance
soil organic matter content, such
as compost incorporation, can
increase water use efficiency
during the dry season when it is
needed most.
A better understanding of soil
ecosystem services can only
be acquired through targeted
research. One such example at
UGA Costa Rica is an ongoing
investigation into the use of
Mountain Microorganisms
(MM) to reduce nutrient
losses from applied organic
fertilizers. The farm at UGA Costa
Mountain Microorganisms (MM), seen
below, is being researched in attempt
to reduce the amount of nutrients lost
from applied organic fertilizers.

2014 – 2015 Sustainability Report

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