National system of soil fertility management of the Republic of Belarus: current state and development prospects. Vestsі Natsyyanal’nay akademіі navuk Belarusі

Abstract

The paper presents a comprehensive study on development of soil fertility management system in the Republic of Belarus. The history of development, as well as the modern scheme of functioning of services for agro-chemical and radiological examination of soils of agricultural lands has been studied in detail, including the sources of their financing, services provided, the list of provided consolidated analytical materials as a result, etc. Special attention is paid to the republican databank of agro-chemical and radiation indicators of agricultural soil, which, through automated information system, is considered an information basis for modeling soil fertility in order to develop recommendations for using mineral fertilizers in individual fields and working plots, farms, districts, regions calculated under requirements for agricultural crops. The authors concluded that the data bank of agro-chemical and radiological properties of soils of agri-cultural lands of the Republic of Belarus, as well as the analytical information system functioning on its basis, were of high practical value and of an applied nature for the country’s economy. However, in the modern world, digital solutions, on the basis of which the data bank functions, are worn out morally. Studies indicate that the technical requirements for functioning and use of electronic databank of agro-chemical and radiological monitoring of soils of agricultural lands in the Republic of Belarus should be formalized in the form of regulations (or rules) and enshrined in the national regulatory framework. In addition, it is necessary to develop a scheme for information content of the databank by optimizing organizational interaction of agro-chemical services of the Republic of Belarus. It is feasible to give access to a huge array of analytical information in the form of geographic information system, which will make it possible to maintain electronic register of agricultural land soils, as well as electronic certification of fields and elementary plots. Implementation of a number of measures to develop the soil fertility management system in the Republic of Belarus may lead to increase in demand for work related to agro-chemical services for agriculture by 50-60 % by 2030.