Od kakovosti tal do ekosistemskih storitev tal

Kakovost tal lahko definiramo kot kontinuirano sposobnost tal za zagotavljanje ekosistemskih storitev (ES). Znanost o tleh prepoznava pet glavnih funkcij tal, ki zagotavljajo ES: (i) primarna produkcija, (ii) čiščenje in uravnavanje vode, (iii) skladiščenje ogljika in uravnavanje podnebja, (iv) biotska pestrost in zagotavljanje habitatov ter (v) zagotavljanje in kroženje hranil. ES ocenjujemo po naslednjih pristopih: (i) na podlagi kazalnikov, pri katerih ocene ES tal temeljijo na poenostavljenih približkih izbranih lastnosti tal; (ii) na empiričnih povezavah med lastnostmi tal in funkcijami tal (statični pristop) in (iii) na podlagi modeliranja talnih procesov v času (dinamični pristop). Število modelov in orodij za ocenjevanje ES tal narašča, vendar pa je vprašljivo, v kolikšni meri se ocene približajo realni porazdelitvi in zastopanosti posamezne ES v prostoru. Nujni so kakovostni vhodni podatki o tleh, izbor robustnih kazalnikov kakovosti tal za ocenjevanje ES in nadaljnji razvoj modelov ter orodij za ocenjevanje funkcij tal in ES v smeri zmanjševanja negotovosti. Slovenija šele postavlja koncept ES tal, zato je namen prispevka na osnovi pregleda literature osvetliti razvoj konceptov in pristopov njihovega ocenjevanja v mednarodnem prostoru. // From soil quality to soil ecosystem services Soil quality is defined as the continued capacity of soils to provide ecosystem services (ES). Soil science identifies five main soil functions that provide ES: (i) primary production, (ii) water purification and regulation, (iii) carbon sequestration and climate regulation, (iv) biodiversity and habitat provision, and (v) provisioning and nutrient cycling. Three categories of ES assessments can be distinguished: (i) indicator approaches that use simplified approximations based on key soil properties as indicators, (ii) static approaches that apply empirical relationships to link soil properties to soil functions, and (iii) dynamic approaches that apply biophysical methods to integrate soil, climate, and environmental factors to model soil processes over time. Many decision-support tools have emerged, but the extent to which estimates of ES approximate the actual distribution and representation of each ES in space is questionable. High-quality soil input data, selection of robust soil quality indicators for ES assessment, and further development of models and tools for assessing soil functions and ES to reduce uncertainty are essential. Slovenia is in the process of establishing the concept of soil ES. Therefore, based on a literature review, this paper aims to show the development of concepts and approaches for ES assessment at the international level.