Soil Physics and Land Management
Research in the chair group Soil Physics and Land Management (SLM) addresses soil physical and hydrological processes at different temporal and spatial scales, and their central role in sustainable land and water management. The chair groups is led by Luuk Fleskens.
Research themes
Research in the chair group Soil Physics and Land Management (SLM) addresses soil physical and hydrological processes at different temporal and spatial scales, and their central role in sustainable land and water management.
To advance understanding of the impacts of land use and management on soil physical processes and related ecosystem functions that are essential for addressing global societal challenges of water and food security, sustainable land management, and climate adaptation.
Our research themes are:
- Soil physics; flow and transport of water, heat, sediment, and solutes
- Ecohydrology; soil-water-plant interactions
- Land use and management; factors affecting soil degradation, conservation, and restoration
Education
Education by Soil Physics and Land Management
The Soil Physics and Land Management group teaches a variety of BSc and MSc courses, ranging from soil physics and groundwater modelling courses to courses on impact assessment and policy aspect of sustainable land management. We are involved in the following education programmes:
Publications & Projects
Our research projects vary from field and laboratory experiments, to detailed process and modelling studies, to scenario and impact assessment studies at watershed level. We regularly publish the outcome of our projects in scientific journals.
Highlighted projects
Highlighted publications
- Estimating actual maize yield with WOFOST in data-scarce small-scale cropping systems of South Africa: Data assimilation approach
- Estimating the emission of microplastics from urban surfaces into the atmosphere using the PI-SWERL
- Exploring the relationship between land abandonment and landscape identity in traditional cultural landscapes: the case of Castelsaraceno, Italy
Chair Holder
Luuk Fleskens is Chair of Soil Physics and Land Management. He focusses on three aspects of informing sustainable land management: unlocking spatial soil management information; assessing viability and sustainability of land management; and appreciating land management decisions.
dr.ir. L (Luuk) Fleskens
Chairholder
People of Soil Physics and Land Management
Each chair group of Wageningen University & Research, under leadership of a professor, has its own area of expertise. Meet the people of this Chair Group.
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