Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.
Environ Sci Technol. 2012 Apr 3;46(7):3687-96. doi: 10.1021/es203880p. Epub 2012 Mar 21.
In many countries there are policies in place that impact on soils, but very few legislative or policy tools specifically for the protection of soil. Recent EU legislative proposals on soil protection have been met with opposition on the grounds of excessive cost and resource demands. With the need for evidence based policy, and recognition that involving the public in environmental monitoring is an effective way of increasing understanding and commitment, there has been growing interest in soil surveys. In addition, it is accepted that the success of environmental policies depends greatly on how effectively scientists, regulators, stakeholders, and society communicate. This paper presents the Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) Soil and Earthworm Survey as an example of public participation in soil surveys that aims to integrate the above. It is demonstrated how such surveys generate data that can be used to prioritise soil assessment, in order to address some of the concerns and objections to soil protection policies. Lessons from this pilot study in England highlight that with strategic planning of civic participation activities, this approach can deliver improvements in the quality of the evidence collected and allow for effective public involvement in policymaking and implementation, on top of direct educational benefits.
在许多国家，都有影响土壤的政策，但很少有专门用于保护土壤的立法或政策工具。最近欧盟关于土壤保护的立法提案遭到反对，理由是成本和资源需求过高。由于需要基于证据的政策，并且认识到让公众参与环境监测是提高理解和承诺的有效途径，因此人们对土壤调查越来越感兴趣。此外，人们普遍认为，环境政策的成功在很大程度上取决于科学家、监管机构、利益相关者和社会之间的沟通效果。本文以开放空气实验室（OPAL）土壤和蚯蚓调查为例，介绍了公众参与土壤调查的情况，旨在整合上述内容。调查如何生成可用于优先评估土壤的相关数据，以解决土壤保护政策的一些担忧和反对意见。英格兰的这项试点研究的经验教训表明，通过对公民参与活动进行战略规划，这种方法可以提高收集证据的质量，并使公众能够有效参与决策和实施，同时还能带来直接的教育效益。
