Soil Assessment Policy and Permissible Levels of Contaminants in Plant Food Products

Soil, a complex natural resource, is composed of organic elements and chunks of rock encasing the surface of the earth. Soils play a crucial role in sustaining animal and plant life on earth by providing habitat, nutrients, and medium for agriculture. Globally, soil contamination poses serious threats to human health and environmental sustainability. Pesticides, industrial effluents, heavy metals, and halogen-based aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons are among the many contaminants found in soil. Soil quality assessment is crucial in determining overall soil quality, soil fertility, soil productivity, and soil health in terms of a sustainable ecosystem. India has a variety of soil in its territory, such as black, red, lateritic, alluvial, and mountainous soil, which differ in their composition, particulate size, and source. A detailed account of soil profiling is described in this chapter, as is the evaluation of soil through various physical and biological techniques. The chapter additionally describes soil contaminants, their types, and different approaches to evaluating soil health. The FAO/WHO allowable levels of some of the toxic metals in soil have been mentioned. The Indian government has subsidized nitrogen and potassium fertilizers for their efficient use in agriculture. To prevent the misuse of urea, neem-coating urea before marketing has been made mandatory. Likewise, the chapter highlights some of the Indian government policies, subsidies, and regulations on soil assessment and soil sustainability.