"According to research priorities within the seventh Framework Programme of the EU, a multidisciplinary R+D project (physics and microbiology of soils, molecular biology of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and biotechnology of mycorrhizal inocula) is proposed aimed to achieving soil rational and sustainable recovery practices for increasing carbon sequestration and stabilization of degraded salt affected soils. Our research will focus on agroecosystems subjected to physical degradation processes, where excess amounts of toxic soluble salts and scarcity of organic matter are the most important environmental factors that limit crop plant growth and development. The main objective of the project is as follows:1) to optimise the use of AM fungi as bioamendments for purposes of improving physical quality of agricultural soils affected by salinity and as a means of increasing the functioning of agroecosystems as carbon sinks; thereby reducing soil erosion and degradation and mitigating CO2 emissions.Among the specific objectives of the project are the followings:1) to isolate and select effective AM fungi for increasing the concentration and immuno-reactivity of soil glomalin,2) to assess the effect of saline stress on diversity of AM fungi, the production of glomalin and its relationship with stability of edaphic structure,3) to determine the balance of carbon in soil inoculated with AM fungi, for estimating the carbon sequestration in the microbial biomass and the fractions of carbon related to microbial activity, including the fraction of glomalin, and4) to obtain indicators of biological activity as a means to assess the capacity of soil for sequestering carbon."