The first EU soil law sets requirements for laboratories
The soil monitoring directive entered into force on 16 December 2025 and countries have three years to transpose it. For the first time minimum quality requirements are set for laboratories analysing soil.
- Soil has its own EU law at last — until now only water and air had limits and mandatory measurement.
- The directive brings regular monitoring of soil condition across the whole Union under common rules, so results from different countries can be compared.
- The part that matters most to laboratories sits in the annexes: minimum quality requirements for soil testing are set out for the first time.
- They cover accreditation, participation in proficiency testing, certified reference materials and determinations by prescribed methods.
- The strictest requirements on the limit of quantification and on confirming results apply to PFAS and cadmium — they decide whether the soil is fit for cultivation.
- In practice that means a steady stream of samples from the monitoring network and a determination with a prescribed method instead of a service defined by the client.
Source: Komisja Europejska