Based on the data, 95 percent of food consumed originates from the soil, as soil is the basis of the land ecosystem. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, currently the world’s soil has been degraded by 52 percent

Soil, with its various micro-organisms, is not an inanimate object. Millions of micro-organisms live in each span of land. The soil on earth is only predicted to survive for up to 60 years. The ongoing soil degradation will reduce the nutrition we consume. This has happened in many countries. It is worse if a country is experiencing turmoil caused by war, so it is essential food self-sufficiency is achieved.

However, self-sufficiency cannot be achieved if plant production is not maximized as a result of unfertile soil conditions. According to Dodik Ridho Nurrochmat, a professor at the Forestry Department, the Bogor Agriculture University (IPB), the higher the welfare rate, the more people care about environmental sustainability. Besides zero environmental degradation, environmental restoration also needs to be carried out in accordance with the limits of human adaptability. It is useless to talk about Indonesia becoming the fifth-largest economy by 2045 if we do not consider soil extinction an urgency.

After several years of debates among experts and scientists, finally in 2022, a yogi of global reputation, a humanitarian and a spiritual leader named Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev successfully raised the soil issue to the surface through the Save Soil movement. This initiative is part of the Conscious Planet Movement.

Since starting on March 21 in London, Sadhguru has been riding a motorcycle for a phenomenal trip from Europe to the Middle East that spans 3,000 kilometers in 100 days to promote the movement. On World Environment Day on June 5, 65-year-old Sadhguru announced that the Save Soil movement had received official support from 74 countries and 2.5 million people.

What are the commitments? Basically, Sadhguru is inviting people and governments all over the world to commit to conducting a global effort to restore and rejuvenate the earth, especially soil from extinction.

According to the FAO, 52 percent of farmlands in the world have been degraded, however, Indonesia has yet to support the Save Soil movement for a variety of reasons. Is this because the laws in Indonesia already sufficiently regulate the risks of soil extinction?

It is true that the 1945 Constitution already adheres to the underlying principles of environmentally sound development and budget allocation for environment protection and management activities. Therefore, central and local governments are required to allocate funds for environmental protection and management activities, as well as to maintain conservation areas and minimize environmental damage, which is stipulated in Law No. 37/2014 on land and water conservation.

Additionally, we must acknowledge the enactment of Law No. 41/2009 on the protection of sustainable food agriculture lands, which mandates the agrarian nation of Indonesia to ensure that sustainable food agricultural lands are sources of decent employment and livelihood for the people. The state also has to guarantee food independence, security and sovereignty as a form of guarantee of the people’s right to food.

Article 33 of the law stipulates that food lands must be utilized to guarantee land and water conservation, which includes protection and conservation of resources, as well as land and water quality management.

Government Regulation No. 12/2012 that implements Law No. 4/2009 also stipulates that sustainable food agricultural land management involving the central and regional governments should be conducted by providing incentives to maintain soil fertility. The regulation also prohibits activities that harm soil fertility.

Despite the elaborate regulations above, in practice, budget allocation and incentive provision for agriculture activities or farmers need to be implemented maximally

For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, there were four incentives for farmers. First, a social safety net program for 2.7 million farmers and farm laborers in poverty, and 1 million fishermen and fish farmers; second, loan interest subsidies; third, capital stimulus for agriculture, marine and fisheries; and last, supply chain policy. However, in practice, the support favors micro, small and medium enterprises. Further, these incentives seem to focus more on classic economic issues.

Associating the current conditions with the Save Soil movement, there are five actions that we must implement as communities, which are also strengthened by legally binding laws and regulations that follow the example set by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. For simplicity, I will refer to them as the “five anti-soil extinction policies”:

First, laws and regulations need to create incentives so that the soil can be free of chemicals that can cause dependency on the part of the soil itself and can negatively impact the ecosystem in general.

Second, the laws and regulations should provide incentives for agriculture activities and encourage a more proactive development to save organisms in the soil.

Third, the legislation must regulate soil moisture through incentives or preventive measures.

Fourth, the laws and regulations should provide incentives for activities that are proven to reduce soil degradation due to the lack of groundwater. Last, the legislation must also provide more detailed regulations to prevent soil erosion.

The purpose of the policies is to improve soil conditions that maintain 3-6 percent of organic content, especially carbon. Hence, the regulations must also ensure that there are independent parties that can assess this aspect from time to time.

The policies should be integrated into development and agriculture plans as an effort to prevent soil extinction.

 ***

The writer is an advocate in Jakarta and PwC Indonesia senior legal partner. The views expressed are her own.