July 15, 2015-In celebration of the International Year of Soil 2015 (IYS), the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) is coordinating a series of activities throughout the year to educate the public about the importance of soil. July’s theme is “Soils Are Living”. In SSSA’s July 15 Soils Matter blog post, experts explain the positive role soil bacteria play in our daily lives.

According to Mary Stromberger, “there are millions of different types of microbes that live in the soil. Organisms that cause diseases reside in soils. But, those “bad” bacteria live amongst the good bacteria, fungi and other animal life in the soil—which is called biodiversity. This variety of life in soil helps keep things balanced. Thus, most of the time, soil microbes are beneficial to the environmen, rather than being a threat.” Stromberger is a soil scientist with Colorado State University.

Soil bacteria are necessary for soil health. The convert naturally occurring chemicals—like nitrogen from the air—into food that plants can use. They help to recycle chemical elements from decomposing plants and animals. Ultimately, those nutrients get into our diets in the form vegetables and fruits. So, when you are enjoying your lunch, be thankful to the hard-working soil bacteria that work hard for your health!

To read the entire blog post, visit http://soilsmatter.wordpress.com. Photo provided by Tom Loynachan: a water bear soil microbe magnified x 1000.

As part of their celebration of IYS, SSSA is developing a series of twelve 2-minute educational videos. July’s Soils Are Living video can be viewed at www.soils.org/iys/monthly-videos. Educational materials can be viewed at www.soils.org/iys.

Follow SSSA on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SSSA.soils, Twitter at SSSA_Soils. SSSA has soils information on www.soils.org/discover-soils, for teachers at www.soils4teachers.org, and for students through 12^th grade, www.soils4kids.org.

The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) is a progressive international scientific society that fosters the transfer of knowledge and practices to sustain global soils. Based in Madison, WI, and founded in 1936, SSSA is the professional home for 6,000+ members and 1,000+ certified professionals dedicated to advancing the field of soil science. The Society provides information about soils in relation to crop production, environmental quality, ecosystem sustainability, bioremediation, waste management, recycling, and wise land use.