Soil, a non-renewable resource, sustains life on Earth by supporting around 95% of global food production and providing ecosystem services such as biomass production, filtration of contaminants and transfer of mass and energy between spheres. Unsustainable management practices and climate change are threatening the natural capital of soils, particularly in the Mediterranean region, where increasing population, rapid land-use changes, associated socio-economic activities and climate change are imposing high pressures on the region's shallow soils. Despite evidence of high soil susceptibility to degradation and desertification, the true extent of soil degradation in the region is unknown. This paper reviews and summarises the scientific literature and relevant official reports, with the aim to advance this knowledge by synthesizing, mapping, and identifying gaps regarding the status, causes, and consequences of soil degradation processes in the European Mediterranean region. This is needed as scientific underpinning of efforts to counteract soil degradation in the region. Three main degradation categories are then considered: physical (soil sealing, compaction, erosion), chemical (soil organic matter, contamination, salinisation), and biological. We find some degradation processes to be relatively well-documented (e.g. soil erosion), while others, such as loss of biodiversity, remain poorly addressed, with limited data availability. We suggest establishment of a continuous, harmonised soil monitoring system at national and regional scale in the Mediterranean region to provide comparable datasets and chart the spatial extent and temporal changes in soil degradation, and corresponding economic implications. This is critical to support decision-making and fulfilment of related sustainable development goals.

土壤是一种不可再生资源，通过支持全球约 95% 的粮食生产并提供生态系统服务（例如生物质生产、污染物过滤以及球体之间的质量和能量转移）来维持地球上的生命。不可持续的管理做法和气候变化正在威胁土壤的自然资本，特别是在地中海地区，人口不断增加、土地利用迅速变化、相关的社会经济活动和气候变化正在对该地区的浅层土壤施加高压。尽管有证据表明土壤对退化和荒漠化的敏感性很高，但该地区土壤退化的真实程度尚不清楚。本文回顾和总结了科学文献和相关官方报告，旨在通过综合、映射、确定欧洲地中海地区土壤退化过程的现状、原因和后果方面的差距。这需要作为应对该地区土壤退化努力的科学基础。然后考虑三个主要的退化类别：物理（土壤封闭、压实、侵蚀）、化学（土壤有机质、污染、盐渍化）和生物。我们发现一些退化过程的记录相对完整（例如土壤侵蚀），而其他一些退化过程，例如生物多样性的丧失，仍然没有得到很好的解决，可用的数据有限。我们建议在地中海地区在国家和区域范围内建立一个连续、协调的土壤监测系统，以提供可比较的数据集并绘制土壤退化的空间范围和时间变化图，以及相应的经济影响。这对于支持相关可持续发展目标的决策和实现至关重要。