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1. Soil impact 1.1. IntroductionThe term “soil” generally denotes the layer of surface earth infused with water, air, and organic elements. Created by processes of weathering and decomposition, it forms the substrate for agriculture and forestry [11]. As a product of both geological and biological processes, soil is not static, but in a state of constant change. Changes continue to be observed in the present day – especially in “younger” landscapes affected by the Ice Age – such as the appearance of islands, the re-routing of ri…

1. IntroductionThe term miasma derives from the Greek ( míasma; “stain,” “defilement”) and was used to refer to a pollution of the air originating in vapors arising from the soil, rotting organic material, or human body odor, and believed to be a cause of disease (cf. Smell). Although wrong from the perspective of present-day science, this was an explanatory paradigm for illness, especially epidemics, that remained highly influential for many centuries. The harmful effects attributed to air pollution are…

The term reclamation denotes the process of reclaiming wetlands for agriculture and settling unused or little-used tracts of land, which began in large areas of Europe in the 17th century. Another aspect of reclamation was the resettlement of farmsteads and villages that had been abandoned over the course of the Thirty Years’ War (Abandoned settlement). This involved a kind of internal development policy, which was closely linked to the process of state formation. In accord with the views of merca…