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Although soil degradation has become a global phenomenon that might severely threaten the provision of a large range of ecosystem services, not much is known about the economic value of soil functions such as carbon sequestration and rainfall water infiltration. Knowing these values would be an important input into the recently developed concept of Soil Security. This paper aimed at closing this gap for a broad set of soil functions valued at the regional level in the Veneto region in Italy and New South Wales in Australia. The study not only elicits non‐market values by a choice experiment but also investigates the impact of personal norm activation and social norms on stated preferences, by a hybrid choice model with multiple latent variables. As the survey was conducted in two countries, our study offers evidence of the external validity of both social norm effects and personal norm activation. The results reveal that respondents positively value the conservation of the soil functions and that both personal norm activation and social norm clearly affect stated preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Six soil functions underpinning urban ecosystem services were considered. • Ecosystem services bundles were investigated. • Sustainable soil management practices increase soil fertility and biodiversity. • Urban green areas act as biodiversity pools. The multiple functions of urban soils secure the supply of ecosystem services to the urban population, but they are seldom taken into account in current urban planning. The purpose of this study is to highlight the multifunctionality of the soils of urban green spaces and to assess the influence of different types of urban green (i.e. parks and gardens, roadside green and agricultural fields) on the joint supply of soil-based ecosystem services. In a case study area in the city of Carpi (NE Italy), we focused on a set of soil functions underpinning ecosystem services and on possible synergies and trade-offs between them. We surveyed and sampled 19 urban green areas to assess the following soil functions: biological fertility, potential habitat for organisms, water regulation and storage, soil buffering capacity and carbon stock. Results showed differences and trends in the bundles of ecosystem services provided by the soils of urban green areas, highlighting the relevance of soil disturbance and vegetation cover density in affecting soil functions. For biological indicators, results showed a negative significant correlation to CaCO 3 content, which is associated with the degree of soil disturbance, and that soils in urban areas do not always have compromised soil fauna and may provide the same level of biological quality as agricultural soils or forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Preferences towards land use policies addressed to climate change adaptation in Garda Lake municipalities are evaluated. • Limiting soil consumption benefits the local dwellers of Garda lake the most. • The interest toward an increase in green urban area is marginal. • The proposal of re-naturalisation of abandoned areas decreases the dwellers utility. In urban contexts land-use planning can play a central role to promote adaptation and mitigation strategies to climate change. Limiting soil consumption, improving urban greening and restoring abandoned areas are three of the most important strategies towards a sustainable land use.. The extent to which these three actions can be effectively implemented depends on the specific biophysical and cultural characteristics of the local context as well as on the preferences of residents. We conducted a Choice Experiment (CE) on a sample of 500 people living in four municipalities of the lake Garda western coastal strip, in Italy, to assess the willingness to pay (WTP) towards these three planning strategies based on alternative land-use. The proposed land use strategies are presented as a feasible way to improve the mitigation and adaptation capacity of the local context. Our results suggest that the local community perceives the growth rate of sealed areas as the most pressing issue, and people are in favour of measures aimed at containing the phenomenon. Efforts in this direction are needed and should inform the current policy debate on local land-use planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]