This piece is part of our report from UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar, where soil health got its own day for the first time.
The European clock is already running
There is also a reason this particular moment is worth the flight.
Europe now has its first law dedicated to soil. The Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive (EU) 2025/2360 was adopted by the Council on 29 September 2025 and by the European Parliament on 23 October 2025, published in the Official Journal on 26 November 2025, and entered into force on 16 December 2025. Member states have three years to transpose it into national law. [1][2][3]
What the directive asks for, in plain terms:
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Monitor and assess soil health | Across agricultural, forest and urban soils [2] |
| Degradation processes covered | Erosion, compaction, contamination, soil sealing [2] |
| Flexibility | Member states can tailor monitoring to local conditions [2] |
| Transposition deadline | Three years from entry into force, so end of 2028 [1] |
What she describes is a two-way process rather than a lobbying exercise. Governments are deciding what they will monitor. Industry has to be ready to supply it. Both sides move faster when they understand each other early, and the pace matters more than the positions.
"With the EU soil monitoring law approved, we're pushing soil health and land restoration forward in the political agenda. We must catch the momentum and understand what European governments are planning on monitoring and what solutions will be rolled out to comply with the EU soil monitoring law. And are getting prepared for that and assessing how we can best serve them and collaborate."
The wider point she made about COPs applies directly here. The reason to be in the room is to work out where the two sides meet:
"How the public sector is shaping regulation, how businesses can play a role to help, and how we can create public-private synergies to work towards resolving the issue of land degradation together as quickly and as best as possible."
"As quickly as possible" is the part that should not be skipped. Regulation sets a floor and a deadline. It does not, on its own, accelerate restoration. Acceleration comes from the public and private sides agreeing early on what will be measured, who measures it, and what counts as proof, so that compliance work and restoration work are the same work rather than two parallel efforts.
A monitoring obligation also behaves differently from a testing obligation, and this applies to everyone in the chain. Monitoring means the same place, measured the same way, compared across years and across regions. The weight falls on protocol consistency, sample provenance and benchmark quality rather than on any single clever measurement. A one-off soil test cannot satisfy a directive built around change over time.
FAQ
- When does the EU Soil Monitoring Law apply?
- Directive (EU) 2025/2360 entered into force on 16 December 2025. Member states have three years to transpose it into national law, which puts the practical deadline at the end of 2028. [1][2]
- What does the EU Soil Monitoring Law require countries to measure?
- Member states must monitor and assess soil health across agricultural, forest and urban soils, covering degradation processes including erosion, compaction, contamination and soil sealing, with room to tailor monitoring to local conditions. [2]
Sources
- Council of the EU, "Council adopts new rules for healthier and more resilient European soils", 29 September 2025. consilium.europa.eu
- European Commission, "First EU law on soil set to enter into force", 5 December 2025. environment.ec.europa.eu
- EU Mission Soil Platform, "The Soil Monitoring Law is published in the EU Official Journal". mission-soil-platform.ec.europa.eu