INTRODUCTION

Black soils are considered the food basket of the world.

Unfortunately, black soils are at great risk of severe degradation. This is why it has become crucial to develop a deeper understanding of the status of the black soils in the world including their distribution at national and global levels. During the second International Network of Black Soils (INBS) workshop in 2019, members discussed and agreed to develop a Global Black Soil Distribution Map (GBSmap) using a country-driven approach based on the endorsed definition of black soils. Two training sessions were organized in 2020-2021 to support INBS members in developing their national maps. Fourteen INBS countries subsequently developed and submitted their national black soil distribution maps.

There are an estimated 725 million hectares of black soils worldwide.

The Russian Federation has the largest area by far, followed by Kazakhstan and China. Black soil distribution strongly correlates with native prairie ecosystems including, but not limited to, other grassland ecosystems with a continental climate. Black soils are most prevalent in the mid-latitudes of North America, Eurasia, and South America. They are also found to a lesser extent in the tropical regions. At a global level, approximately one-third of black soils are covered with crops and another third by grasslands, with forests accounting for the remaining third. However, this distribution varies within each region. Read the press release