December 5 was designated by the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) and officially celebrated as World Soil Day for the first time in 2014.

This year’s World Soil Day (World Soil Day 2022) initiatives are under the theme “Soils: Where Food Begins” and aim to raise awareness of the importance of maintaining healthy ecosystems and human well-being by addressing soil management challenges.

In Bulgaria, the state policy for the protection of soil resources at the national, regional, and local levels is carried out through the implementation of the National Program for the Protection, Sustainable Use, and Restoration of Soil Functions 2020-2030, which is a program document with clearly defined goals and measures for practical implementation. The main objective of the program is to ensure the protection of soils from erosion, acidification, salinization, compaction, reduction of organic matter, pollution, sealing, landslides, as well as to ensure the sustainable use and preservation for future generations and, if necessary, restoration of lands and functions of soils.

As a member of the European Union (EU), Bulgaria’s actions for soil protection are related to the implementation of pan-European strategies and priorities. Bulgaria supported the adopted EU Soil Strategy for 2030 Reaping the benefits of healthy soils for people, food, nature and climate. The main activities in the EU Soil Strategy for 2030 are related to: preparation of a methodology and indicators for assessing the degree of desertification and deterioration of land quality in the EU; participation in the UN program for setting targets for land degradation neutrality (LDN); information on the status and deterioration of land quality and desertification in the EU.