Professional Assessment of Soil Degradation and Restoration Options on Plateau Farmlands of Jos, North Central Nigeria

This study provides a professional assessment of soil degradation extent and evaluates restoration options for farmlands on the Jos Plateau, Plateau State, located in Nigeria's North Central geopolitical zone. The Jos Plateau is characterised by thin, weathered soils on crystalline basement rock, which are particularly vulnerable to rapid degradation under tillage and water erosion. Decades of mining, intensive cultivation, and declining fallow periods have left significant portions of Jos Plateau farmland degraded. Using a professional degradation assessment and restoration planning design, 40 degraded farmland sites were assessed in Barkin Ladi, Shendam, and Jos East local government areas. Degradation severity was evaluated using the Land Degradation Assessment in Drylands (LADA) methodology across physical, chemical, and biological criteria. Degraded sites were categorised by restoration feasibility into three classes: naturally recoverable, requiring assisted restoration, and severely degraded beyond practical restoration. Restoration trials were established on 12 sites comparing subsoiling, topsoil replacement, organic amendment application, and revegetation with native grasses and Faidherbia albida trees. Findings revealed that 48 percent of assessed farmlands were moderately to severely degraded, with soil organic carbon, available phosphorus, and biological activity all showing critical deficits. Assisted restoration using subsoiling combined with organic amendment produced the most significant short-term improvement in soil physical quality. The study recommends a priority-based restoration investment plan for Plateau State, with community-based land management agreements as the social foundation for sustainable restoration outcomes. Keywords: soil degradation, restoration, Jos Plateau, Plateau State, land management.