EU Soil Monitoring Law enters into force

16 December 2025

EU Soil Monitoring Law

By Jenny Brunton, Senior European Policy Advisor

The EU Soil Monitoring Law is the first EU legislation establishing a harmonised framework to monitor and improve soil health across Europe, aiming for healthy soils by 2050 by defining healthy soil, setting monitoring standards, and addressing degradation like erosion, contamination, and carbon loss, requiring Member States to implement monitoring and management plans to support sustainable practices and restore contaminated sites.

It came into force on 16 December 2025 with Member States having three years to transpose it into national law and six years for first reporting.

The Law mandates for Member States to monitor and assess the health of their soils. To do that, the Member States can build on and use the soil monitoring frameworks already in use to avoid the duplication of efforts. The directive also states that it shall not impose additional burdens on forest owners or other landowners, and clarifies that these actors should be supported, not penalised, as they contribute to improving soil health and resilience.

Key Aspects of the Law:
  • Harmonized Monitoring: Creates a common EU methodology for monitoring soil health (physical, chemical, biological) using standardized descriptors and laboratory quality, allowing comparable data.
  • Healthy Soil Definition: Establishes a common understanding of healthy soil, vital for ecosystem services, food security, and climate mitigation.
  • Sustainable Management: Supports practices to combat threats like erosion, loss of organic matter, contamination, and sealing, using non-binding EU targets and national trigger values to guide action.
  • Contaminated Sites: Mandates Member States to identify, assess, and manage contaminated sites to protect human health and the environment.
  • Support for Land Managers: Aims to provide knowledge, tools, and incentives (like potential certification for good practices) to farmers and landowners, without imposing new bureaucracy on them.
  • Data & Reporting: Requires Member States to report regularly to the Commission on soil health, land take, and contaminated sites. 
  • Support Systems: Integrates with initiatives like the EU Soil Strategy for 2030 and Horizon Europe's Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe" to provide data, innovation, and funding.