The Pacific Soil Partnership was established in 2014 to promote sustainable soil management across 22 island nations in the Pacific region. It faces challenges like low understanding of soil issues, reducing resources and yields, erosion, and nutrient depletion. Activities include soil mapping, research, and training workshops. A 2019 planning meeting identified priorities like promoting sustainable policy, education, research collaboration, and developing a Pacific Soil Portal for data sharing. The partnership aims to support the Global Soil Partnership and address regional issues like adaptation to conditions in coral atolls.

1. Pacific Soil Partnership
Peter Wilson (Chair)

2. Pacific Soil Partnership
• Established October 2014
• Includes 22 island nations of
the Pacific, Papua New Guinea
New Zealand and Australia
• Approx 10,000 x 5000 km
• Very diverse landscapes from
extensive ancient flat lands in Australia,
tectonically active mountainous lands in New
Zealand, PNG and some volcanic islands,
through to low coral islands and atolls
susceptible to sea-level rise

4. Regional challenges
• Low community understanding and
acknowledgment of soil issues
• Reducing organisational capacity and resources
• Reducing yields
• Increased land sealing
• Sub-soil constraints
• Low nutrients
• Erosion, including coastal
• Nutrient leaching and
groundwater contamination
• Short term land tenure policy
• Shortening fallow
• Nutrient mining
• Poor nutrient conservation
• Low nutrient replacement
• Improper cultivation practices

5. (some) Regional activity
• NZ - National Soil Data Repository (NSDR); Smarter
targeting of erosion control; Bio economy in the digital
age; Sustainable nutrient management of peat soils;
Dairy effluent mineralisation; high class land and
versatile soils; design national soil carbon monitoring
programme; farm-scale mapping to underpin
regulation
• Aust - large area (200,000 km2) operational digital
soil mapping and agricultural suitability assessment;
business case for National Soil Information Facility;
national soil modelling, 10yr Soil Cooperative Research
Centre; Soil Science Australia audit of current courses
and education opportunities

6. • Impact pathway barriers
• Conflicting advice about role of soil health
in farm production
• Lack of incentives
• Technology cost
• Disconnected policy
• Market disconnection
PACIFIC
SOIL
PORTAL
Soil management in
Pacific Islands:
investigating nutrient cycling
Training
workshops
Improved
Soil
Management

7. PSP Implementation Plan
• Planning workshop held 21-23 May 2019, Brisbane
Australia, 18 people from 13 countries/organisations
• To be promoted at Pacific Week of Agriculture, Samoa
30 Sept - 4 Oct
• Key priorities for PSP actions
Pillar 1 – Promotion Promote PSP and GSP, Sustainable Soil Management Policy, Koronivia Joint Work on
Agriculture initiative, Adoption, Monitoring, Communication
Pillar 2 – Investment
& education
Engage government and policy, Education, Investment strategy, Science-Technical
cooperation, Communication
Pillar 3 - Research Research needs, Return on investment, Relevance, Collaboration, Research
approaches
Pillar 4 – Data &
Information
Pacific Soil Portal, Data capture and management, Systems governance, Review
systems and capacity, Country information systems, Products (incl. GSP global maps)
Pillar 5 -
Harmonization
Field handbook, Classification, Data exchange, Interpretation, Mapping, Pacific
RESOLAN through ASPAC, Communication and training

8. PSP Governance
Position Name Country/Affiliation
Chair Peter Wilson Australia / CSIRO
Vice-Chair Siua Halavatau Tonga /MAFF
ITPS Megan Balks NZ / Uni Waikato
ITPS Siua Halavatau Tonga / MAFF
Pillar 1 Chair John Oakeshott (Acting) Fiji / SPC
Pillar 2 Chair Nacanieli Tuivavalagi Fed States Micronesia /
College of Micronesia-FSM
Pillar 3 Chair
Pillar 3 Vice Chair
Viliamu Iese
Ramakrishna Akkinapally
(Tuvalu) / Uni Sth Pacific
PNG / NARI
Pillar 4 Chair David Medyckyj-Scott (TBC) NZ / Manaaki Whenua
Pillar 5 Chair
Pillar 5 GLOSOLAN
Peter Wilson (Interim)
Rob De Hayr
Australia / CSIRO
Australia / Qld Gov, ASPAC

9. GSP related activity since
2018
• Preparation of national soil organic carbon maps.
However, more support required for the islands
• Contribution to INSII activities, development of
GLOSIS and data exchange standards
• Regional Soil Laboratory Network for the Pacific
established under ASPAC
• Soil field schools started on Tonga; Kiribati and
Tuvalu
• Atoll Soil Health - Kiribati; Tuvalu and Marshall -
evaluations of root crops for adaptation to harsh
atoll conditions; pot and field trials testing
targeted compost recipes

10. Potential activity 2019-20
• Promoting the Pacific Implementation Plan ,
seeking financial and political support.
• Develop national maps on soil erosion, carbon
sequestration potential and salinity. Need to
review capacity and resource availability
• Establishment/strengthening of national soil
information system (support trial implementation
of GLOSIS data services and CountrySIS) – needs
resources
• Support the GLOSOLAN work plan, including
ASPAC Inter-laboratory Proficiency Program –
needs resources for Pacific countries