DEPARTMENT OF SOIL SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Soil is a natural non renewable resource providing essential services to ecosystem that are critical for life. Soil acts as growing medium, filter water, provides habitat for billions of organisms, contributing to biodiversity and supplies most of the antibiotics used to fight diseases. Soil provides foundation for our cities and towns, dumping site for solid waste and filter wastewater. Finally, soil provides us with feed, fiber, food and fuel that is the basis of our nation’s agro-ecosystems.

The food security issues of a country are related to the population growth, the natural resources including non renewable (Soil and minerals) and renewable (water and Forest) besides industries and share in the world trade and job market within the country. Rapid population growth increases the demand for housing, sanitations, health and education facilities and of course food. All these requirements are met at the cost of over exploiting the fixed natural none renewable resource “the soil”. Most of the productive land is either converted to non productive use like construction of houses, expanding cities, schools, hospitals, industries and roads reducing the food production or over exploiting soil for more agriculture product reducing its production potential. Over exploitation of soils for food production to meet the demand of growing population make soil vulnerable to problems like erosion, lower soil fertility salinity and water logging. The courses offered by the department addresses the issue of soil problems and its management.

The department of Soil and Environmental Sciences started bachelor’s degree program in Spring2022. In the beginning, this department started with limited laboratory facilities that are provided by ARI (Agriculture Research Institute Mingora Swat. At present, the department has established its own laboratory that houses basic soil analytical instruments/chemicals catering the need of bachelor’s degree students. The department is also planning to start Ms and Ph D program in its long term planning. At the movement, the department has limited but highly qualified faculty and laboratory staff. The department is providing full opportunities and a better environment to students for their future research and studies.