Our main area of study focuses on the dynamics of organic matter, which plays a leading role in the natural fertility of soils. This research is framed within the global need to increase soil organic carbon stocks, both as a tool to combat the increase in atmospheric CO2—the main cause of climate change—and as a means to improve soil fertility, which is currently declining around the world and particularly in Europe.

Our work focuses on a number of different areas, including: the study of carbon sequestration in the soil (positive or negative; gains or losses) as a result of changes in land use (e.g. reforestation of abandoned agricultural areas, changes in agricultural or forestry practices); the assessment of CO2 soil stocks at the regional level and their relationship to land use, climatology, and geological substrate; the characterization of soil organic matter from chemical and biochemical perspectives, and determining the impact of land-use change and irregular ecological events (e.g., wildfires) on these characteristics; and obtaining, characterizing and applying organic fertilizers (particularly commercial humus-based fertilizers) and evaluating their effectiveness as plant-growth biostimulants.