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Evolution of Tropical Soil Science: Past and Future

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EVOLUTION OF TROPICAL SOIL SCIENCE: PAST AND FUTURE Workshop Brussels, 6 March, 2002 Guest Editor: Georges Stoops KAOW-ARSOM . ACADEMIE ROY ALE KONINKLIJKE ACADEMIE •DES VOOR ' • ScIENCES D OuTRE-MER ÜVERZEESE WETENSCHAPPEN 2003 EVOLUTION OF TROPICAL SOIL SCIENCE: PAST AND FUTURE Workshop Brussels, 6 March, 2002 Guest Editor: Georges Stoops KAOW-ARSOM ACADEMIE ROY ALE KONINKLIJKE ACADEMIE DES VOOR ' SCIENCES D ûuTRE-MER ÛVERZEESE WETENSCHAPPEN 2003 ACADEMIE ROYALE KONJNKLJJKE ACADEMIE DES VOOR SCIENCES o'ÜUTRE-MER ÜVERZEESE WETENSCHAPPEN rue Defacqz 1 boîte 3 Defacqzstraat 1 bus 3 B-1000 Bruxelles (Belgique) B-1000 Brussel (België) Tél. 02.538.02.11 Tel. 02.538.02.11 Fax 02.539.23.53 Fax 02.539.23.53 E-mail : [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Web: http ://users.skynet.be/kaowarsom Web: http ://u sers.skynet.be/kaowarsom ISBN 90-75652-29- 1 D/2003/0 149/l CONTENTS M. DELIENS. - Welcome ....... 5 G. STOOPS. - lntroduction ...... 7 R. DUDAL. - Evolving Concepts in Tropical Soil Science : the Humid Tropics . 15 A. RUELLAN. - The Contribution of Intertropical Pedology to the Development of Soil Science. The Contribution of French Pedologists . 39 R. RICARDO & A. REFFEGA. - Contribution portugaise au développe- ment de la science du sol tropicale . 49 J. DECKERS et al. - Tropical Soils in the Classification Systems of USDA, FAO and WRB . 79 J. D'HooRE. - The Soil Map of Africa (1/5,000,000). Joint Project CCTA no. 11 . 95 F. NACHTERGAELE & E. v AN RANST. - Qualitative and Quantit- ative Aspects of Soil Databases in Tropical Countries . 107 C. SYs. - Influence of Climate and Soil on Traditional Agriculture in Tropical Africa . 127 A. ÜZER. - Conclusions . 147 Workshop Evolution of Tropical Soil Science: Past and Future Brussels, 6 March, 2002 Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences pp. 5-6 (2003) Welcome by Michel DELIENS* For several years already, our Academy has been in contact with Por­ tuguese institutions and two memoranda of cooperation have been esta­ blished. The first one was signed on January 10, 1996 with the lnstituto de lnvestigaçiio Cientifica Tropical of Lisbon, which resulted in the organiza­ tion of a successful exhibition at the Royal Library (Brussels) entitled: "The Adventures of Plants and the Portuguese Discoveries". The second one was signed on July 18, 1996 with the lnstituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical. Profs. Drs. António Guerra Réffega and Rui Pinto Ricardo, members of the lnstituto de lnvestigaçiio Cientifica Tropical, who both had to read a paper today were unfortunately unable to come to Brussels. This is why our Colleague Professor Georges Stoops will, in his introduction, shortly sum­ marize the topics which should have been developed by the Portuguese speakers. Their manuscripts, however, will be taken into consideration for publication in the Proceedings. Our Academy is also closely linked with the Académie des Sciences d'Outre-Mer de France. This resulted in the organization of two joint ses­ sions in Paris on 13th and 14th May, 1995. The theme of these meetings concemed problems dealing with cooperation for development. Everybody is aware of the major importance of having a good knowledge of soils of which the exploitation is essential for the existence itself of human communities. Pedological problems are particularly crucial in the tropical regions with many vulnerable soils. Our planet is undergoing drastic climatic changes that involve related phenomena such as an increase in temperature, a melting of ice bodies and a desertification of large areas, situated mainly in tropical countries. * President of the Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences, rue Defacqz 1/3, B-1000 Brussels (Belgium). 6 M. DELIENS Also human factors have a negative impact on the quality of soils: the rapidly expanding demography, the intensive agriculture, the use of unsuit­ able farming systems, the extension of towns and infrastructures which may develop on rich agricultural soils, as well as pollution caused by industry, mining and domestic activities. It is therefore essential to gain a trustworthy knowledge of soils, to develop a logica] classification system and to follow systematically their evolution under different types of management, in order to carne to a sus­ tainable use of the available soils, and a conservation of the endangered sites. This is the main purpose of our session. Workshop Evolution of Tropical Soil Science: Past and Future Brussels, 6 March, 2002 Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences pp. 7-13 (2003) Introduction by Georges STOOPS* The aim of this symposium is to bring together several persons who have played an important role in the development of tropical soil science and a few younger colleagues to give their vision on the present and future of trop­ ical soil science. Moreover, this theme was an excellent occasion to illus­ trate the history and to co-operate with the Instituto de lnvestigaçáo Cien­ tifica Tropical in Lisbon and our sister academy in Paris. Both institutions sent a positive reply to our invitation, but much to our regret, our Portuguese colleagues, Prof. Rui Ricardo and Prof. António Réffega, were not able to join us. However, their paper will be included in the proceedings of this symposium. Prof. Alain Ruellan of the "Académie des Sciences d'Outre­ Mer" in Paris will illustrate the contribution of the French researchers to soil science. In the first half of the 20th century, tropical soils were investigated mainly by European scientists trained in soil science according to concepts based on the existing knowledge on temperate soils at that moment. The Dokuchaev principle of zonality still played an important role in soil classification and mapping (DUDAL 2003). Theoretical and practical problems caused by the use of this principle in tropical soil survey were already commented upon by VAGELER (1941). He stated also that soil surveys in Europe could map small, significant differences between soils, based on an interaction with the knowledge of local farmers, whereas in tropical areas, where much larger areas of soils have to be mapped, such feedback was hardly possible. Of course, ethnopedology, which is now strongly developed in Mexico (ÜRTIZ 2002), was not yet a topic. * Member of the Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences; emer. prof. Department of Geo­ logy and Soil Science, Ghent University (Belgium). 8 G. STOOPS When discussing soils in the tropics, a clear distinction has to be made between those of the arid regions, those of the more humid tropics and those of the mountainous areas. Whereas the genera! characteristics of the first are essentially determined by climate and the drainage, this is not true for the typical soils of the humid tropics and their bordering regions. Here not only the present climate plays a role, but far more the past climates, and the fact that soils developed in a pre-weathered parent material (STOOPS 1989). In Africa, for example, a deep weathering mantle formed, often over a period of millions of years, as testified by the presence of Cretaceous land surfaces. Por instance, the Plateau of the Bateke near Kinshasa existed already when in Europe the Alps were still forming. The cover of intensely weathered rock is besides much Iarger than the present climate suggests, due to cli­ matic changes in the past, and shifting of the zone of maximum weathering as a result of continental drift (TARDY & RoQUIN 1998). This is in contrast with the temperate and boreal areas, where during the lee Ages all former weathering products were removed by the glaciers or rivers, or covered by recent sediments, such as loess or moraines. Therefore, in temperate areas, especially in the northem hemisphere, the parent material is a relatively fresh, only slightly weathered rock. This is also partially the case for soils in the mountainous areas of the tropics, in young volcanic areas and recently formed landscapes such as flood plains and deltas. If soil science had started in Centra! Africa, rather than in Russia, several concepts would perhaps have been formulated in another way. The first gen­ eration of soil scientists working in the tropics was therefore obliged to look critically to the theories they Ieamed at their University or College, and for­ get about zonality (at least on a small scale) and the over-importance given to the climate. Soil scientists soon discovered that geomorphology and par­ ent material were, on a regional scale, much more important than climate (RUELLAN 2003). Although the first important contributions to tropical soil science date from the thirties (for instance VAGELER 1930, MOHR 1934-38, MoHR & VAN BAREN 1954), a real breakthrough carneonly in the fifties and the sixties of last century, when especially Belgium, France and Portugal founded in their colonies large research stations with a pedological section, supported by specialized research teams in Europe. The obvious merit was that not only technica!, but also fundamental research, often on an interdisciplinary basis, was largely sponsored. In the Netherlands and UK attention was meanwhile mainly given to practical applications of soil studies in South and Southeast Asia. But this does not mean that Belgium, France or Portugal were Iess interested in applications. Por instance, already in 1938, J. Baeyens INTRODUCTION 9 published two volumes on the natural fertility of the soils of the Lower Congo, at that time a very progressive document. Several studies in the Belgian colonies concemed management and production capacities of soils in the tropics both on the scale of industrial companies and that of small farmers (SYs 2003). With respect to arid soils especially the input of French pedologists in Northem Africa (RUELLAN 2003) has to be mentioned, for instance in Alge­ ria and Morocco. Their studies on soil genesis in relation to the landscape were very innovative at that time. As mentioned before, concepts of soil science from temperate regions were not readily applicable in Africa.
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