SOIL INVENTORY METHODS FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA January 1995

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TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE

1.0 THE ESSENCE OF SOIL

• 1.1 Objectives and Purpose of the Manual
  1.2 Definition of Soil Classification and Soil Inventory
  1.3 The Nature and Purpose of Soil
  1.4 The Use of Soil Inventories
  

2.0 THE ORGANIZATION FOR A SOIL INVENTORY

• 2.1 Defining the Purpose and Objectives of the Soil Inventory
  2.2 Designing the Soil
  2.3 Planning the Soil Inventory and the Preparation of a Workplan
  2.4 Qualifications of Soil Surveyors
  

3.0 PRE-FIELD ACTIVITIES

• 3.1 Confirming Purpose and Objectives
  3.2 The Use of Existing Information and Preliminary Field Studies
  3.3 Identifying and Designing Soil Mapping Units
  3.4 Initial Legend Formulation
  3.5 Mapping Bases
  

4.0 FIELD MAPPING METHODOLOGY

• 4.1 Determination of the Map Unit
  4.2 The Use of Aerial Photography and Remote Sensing
  4.3 Plotting Soil Boundaries
  4.4 Sampling Design and Data Collection
  4.5 Map and Data Reliability
  4.6 Field Verification, Quality Control and Correlation
  

5.0 POST-FIELD ACTIVITIES

• 5.1 Final Map and Legend Preparation
  5.2 Map Symbolization and Legibility
  5.3 Computer Files and Geographic Information Systems for Maps and Data
  5.4 The Soil Survey Report
  5.5 Maintenance and Access of Data Collected
  

6.0 USE OF THE SOIL MAP AND DATA

• 6.1 Planning the Use and Management of Soil
  6.2 The Kinds of Interpretations
  6.3 Quality Control and Correlation
  6.4 The Use of Other Data
  6.5 Distribution and Format of Interpretive Information
  

7.0 REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX C

LIST FIGURES

• Figure 1.1 An area of land and the Soil Profile (pedon) that Characterizes It
  Figure 1.2 Polypedons as Units of Soil and Landscape Classification
  Figure 1.3 The 3-Dimensional Relationship of Named Soil Units and Landscape Features
  Figure 2.1 Maps of the Same Area at Different Scales
  Figure 2.2 Flow Diagram for Planning a Soil Survey
  Figure 4.1 Portion of a Soil Survey Map Illustrating Simple and Compound Map Units
  Figure 4.2 The Building Blocks of Soil Mapping
  Figure 4.3 Preliminary Map Unit Delineations Checked and Verified in the Field
  Figure 4.4 Numbered Sample Sites within the Map Unit Delineations
  Figure 4.5 Soil Map Units with Labels that are Explained in the Map Legend
  Figure 4.6 Part of a Published Soil Map; Map Scale 1:100,000; from Soils of the Taseko Lakes Area; Soil Survey Report No. 36
  Figure 5.2 Example of Computer Output from BCSIS
  

LIST TABLES

• Table 2.1 The Relationship Between Map Scale, Map Unit Area (cm2) and Area on the Ground (ha)
  Table 2.2 Criteria for Identifying Survey Intensity Levels
  Table 2.3 Examples of Soil Survey Inspection Densities
  Table 2.4 Characteristics and Uses of Different Survey Intensity Levels (SIL)
  Table 4.1 Definition of Soil Association Components Recommended for Use
  Table 6.1 Example of Agriculture and Forestry Interpretations from a Soil Survey
  Table 6.2 Example of Geological Hazards and Terrain Capability for Residential Settlement Interpretations from a Soil Survey
  

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Appreciation is extended to the many individuals who reviewed the initial outline for this report and provided valuable suggestions for its improvement. These individuals are:

• Neville Gough, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Kelowna John Jungen, Industrial Waste and Hazardous Contaminants Branch, Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, Victoria

  Dr. Les Lavkulich, Soils Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

  Ted Lea and Bob Maxwell, Wildlife Branch, Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, Victoria

  Bob Mitchell, Research Section, Ministry of Forests, Kamloops

  Graeme Hope, Research Section, Ministry of Forests, Kamloops

  Dr. Wayne Pettapiece, Alberta Land Resource Unit, Agriculture Canada, Edmonton

  John Senyk, Canadian Forest Service, Victoria

  Dr. Jack Shields and Dr. Charles Tarnocai, Centre for Land and Biological Resources Research, Ottawa

  Laurens Van Vliet and Elizabeth Kenney, B.C. Land Resource Unit, Centre for Land and Biological Resources Research, Agriculture Canada, Vancouver

Special thanks are provided to Herb Luttmerding for his continued guidance and support throughout the preparation of this publication.

This manual was written by Mr. Mark E. Walmsley (Westland Resource Group) with overall coordination provided by Mr. Herb Luttmerding (Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks).

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Copyright © 1997 Province of British Columbia


Published by the Resources Inventory Committee