Soil Types and Degradation Pathways in Saudi Arabia: A Geospatial Approach for Sustainable Land Management

Land degradation (LD) is a dominant threat of the decade, which is deteriorating arable lands globally. Therefore, this intensification of LD has stimulated global governing bodies and researchers to take the initiative against this dilemma through sustainable and eco-friendly approaches. Geographical mapping is critical for analyzing land formation, its types, and uses; data-based maps provide a detailed overview of land use. In this study, we have created simplified SRTM-based maps for Saudi Arabia related to soil types, soil thickness, and soil uses either as vegetation or for agricultural aspects using GIS tools. Results of these GIS analyses showed that the maximum area of the country is sandy, followed by loam and sandy loam. Meanwhile, the maximum soil thickness is either under 0-4 meters or 43-50 meters. This geological display of the country could be instrumental in assessing the soil types and what sort of inputs or steps can be taken to make each type of soil fertile. Moreover, we also mentioned the land degradation pathways impacting the country’s arable lands and explained the pathways that can help assess such land losses. Besides land loss pathways, we explained the most suitable mitigation strategies, including mulching, cover cropping, agroforestry, riparian buffer strips, agroforestry, terracing, and nutrient use efficiency. In this article, we also focused on the aims of the Saudi Green Initiative and the steps that are being taken by international governing bodies like UNDP, UNEP, FAO, and the World Bank to mitigate land degradation in the region. However, further studies are required to assess the intensity of these solutions at each soil type and thickness.