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Short abstract:

This contribution describes the changing role and position of soil science and soil practitioners during periods of political transition. It focuses on transformation of soil knowledges and remediation practices in Kazakhstan’s dryland ecosystems during Soviet and independent history.

Long abstract:

This paper examines transformation of soil knowledges and remediation practices during periods of political transition. Approaching soils as dynamic natural-cultural compositions, this contribution discusses the changing role and position of soil science and soil practitioners in relation to Kazakhstan’s dryland ecosystems during Soviet and independent history. The Soviet modernization campaign of the 1950s and 60s with expansion of agricultural and mining projects left legacies of polluted and depleted soils while transforming soil science into an agricultural discipline. At the same time, Soviet soil scientists were able to bring more holistic concepts of the biosphere and biogeochemistry to international attention through participating in international projects organized by the UN. These traditions became a vital resource for Kazakhstan’s environmental movements during the liberalization period since the mid-1980s. Soil ecologists studied ways to restore what they called technogenic environments and wastelands after mining. In various projects, they were able to continue remediation and recultivation experiments of damaged landscapes, re-introducing local pioneer plants and accelerate the slow process of ecosystems recovery. Soil experts and practitioners had to adapt to the post-independence economic and political transformations that involved working with new local and international institutions as well as technoscientific and traditional approaches to soil health and remediation. As Kazakhstan continues to rely on extractive industries established during the Soviet period the revaluation of its history remains a highly contested issue. This paper describes these processes of transformation and examines how they affected soil practices and ways of dealing with depleted soils.