Conservation refers to planning and regulatory approaches that safeguard soil and subsurface systems by reserving, protecting, or structuring their use over the long term. Rather than focusing on active soil improvement, this family is about preventing degradation and conflicts by setting clear spatial rules for what can (and cannot) happen in the soil and subsurface. Conservation practices often use zoning, spatial designation, or layered planning to protect soil functions, geological structures, groundwater systems, and ecosystem services, while enabling coordinated and efficient development.
Keep in mind that simply controlling land-use expansion (”saying what is not allowed”) is not enough:
“Instead of assuming that intensification will spontaneously occur and reduce pressure on land, controlling land-use expansion should go ahead or at least hand in hand with interventions to support intensification.” Meyfroidt, 2024, p.15