Chilean Team Unveils Soil Regeneration Technology at COP30 Climate Summit

During the Thirtieth Conference of the Parties (COP30), held in Belém, Brazil, between November 10th and 21st, 2025, a dedicated team from the University of Talca (UTalca) in Chile introduced a pioneering project aimed at combating worldwide soil degradation. This innovative development, dubbed “Biocrust-X,” centers on engineering artificial biological crusts designed to revitalize severely eroded land areas. UTalca’s participation marked their second consecutive appearance at this major climate conference, underscoring the sustained commitment of Chilean academia to delivering international climate solutions.

The core mechanism of the Biocrust-X project involves harnessing microbial communities sourced from some of the planet’s most extreme environments, specifically the Atacama Desert and Antarctica. These specialized microbes are utilized to cultivate a protective, regenerative layer on degraded soils. Professor Andrea Barrera Valenzuela, affiliated with UTalca’s Department of Microbiology, lauded these microbial groups, referring to them as “ecosystem engineers” due to their profound ability to enhance soil characteristics. Crucially, data presented by the Chilean contingent indicated that these bio-engineered crusts can boost the soil’s water retention capacity by over 30 percent, a finding of immense significance given the escalating global scarcity of water resources.

The crisis of soil degradation presents a formidable global challenge. According to United Nations statistics, more than 40 percent of the world’s soils are already degraded, posing a direct and immediate threat to global food security. The situation is particularly acute in Chile, where 48.7 percent of the national territory is affected by erosion. Furthermore, a staggering 18.1 million hectares within the country are classified as suffering from severe or very severe erosion. This research directly addresses the pressing need for sustainable, long-term alternatives to conventional agrochemicals, especially since much of this degradation is linked to intensive food production practices that jeopardize the planet’s capacity to nourish its growing population.

The team responsible for presenting this groundbreaking solution at the summit—which welcomed over 50,000 attendees—was a compact but impactful group. It included Professor Andrea Barrera Valenzuela, alongside biochemistry students Camila Castro and Francisco Escobar. Their opportunity to showcase Biocrust-X stemmed from their success in UTalca’s internal competition, “UTalca Ambassadors for Climate Change.” The presentation of Biocrust-X highlighted the institutional emphasis placed on student-driven, innovative solutions during high-level discussions concerning climate financing and the implementation of mitigation strategies, initiatives overseen at COP30 by President André Correa do Lago.

Beyond immediate agricultural improvements, the Biocrust-X project is fundamentally focused on securing future food supplies. This is especially relevant considering projections suggesting that if current trends persist, over 90 percent of global land could face substantial degradation by the year 2050. Studies like this one serve to pivot agricultural science away from an exclusive focus on purely chemical and physical inputs toward a deeper consideration of biological and ecological factors. This shift aligns perfectly with the burgeoning principles of regenerative agriculture, offering a pathway toward more resilient and sustainable land management practices for the future.