UpDate - Vol. 14, No. 6, Page 6
October 6, 1994
Donald Sparks elected chair of international soil society

     Donald Sparks, Distinguished Professor of Soil Science and
chairperson of the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences was voted
chairperson-elect of Commission II-Soil Chemistry of the International
Soil Science Society at its 15th world congress held in Acapulco.
     The society, which meets every four years, has 6,500 members from
more than 100 countries. Founded in 1927, it helps steer research and
define the value of soil scientists in society.
     Sparks, a society member since 1979, credits the environmental
movement with bringing increasing recognition to the field of soil
science. With governments placing emphasis on issues involving
wetlands, pollutants and sludge, the focus of soil scientists is
evolving from strict attention to traditional soil science to an
environmental focus, he said.
     Sparks predicts that soil science societies will take an
increasingly proactive approach to environmental concerns worldwide.
As chairperson-elect, he is responsible for organizing symposia for
the next world congress, to be held in 1998 in Montpelier, France.
     Sparks and Nicola Senesi of Italy, the current chairperson of
Commission II, also are planning a mid-term symposium for 1996. They
hope to attract scientists from various disciplines to focus on the
relationshop between soil chemistry and the environment.