9.

Soil Resources (Definition of Soil, factors, brief introduction

to Soil Classification)
Soil is the mixture of minerals, organic matter, gases, liquids, and the countless
organisms that together support life on Earth. Soil is a natural body known as the
Pedosphere and which performs four important functions: it is a medium for
plant growth; it is a means of water storage, supply and purification; it is a
modifier of Earth's atmosphere; it is a habitat for organisms; all of which, in turn,
modify the soil.

Soil is considered to be the "skin of the Earth" and interfaces with its lithosphere,
hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Soil consists of a solid phase (minerals
and organic matter) as well as a porous phase that holds gases and water.
Accordingly, soils are often treated as a three-state system of solids, liquids, and
gases. We can divide the properties of soil into two basic types i.e. physical and
chemical. Their detail is as under:

Physical Properties of Soil:

a. Permeability: (the rate at which water moves through the soil) and Water-
Holding Capacity (WHC; the ability of a soils micropores to hold water for plant
use) are affected by:

1. The amount, size and arrangement of pores.

2. Macropores control a soil’s permeability and aeration.

3. Micropores are responsible for a soil’s WHC.

b. Porosity: is the shape and arrangements of soil particles help determining

porosity. Porosity or pore space is the amount of air space or void space between
soil particles. Infiltration, groundwater movement, and storage occur in these
void spaces. The porosity of soil or geologic materials is the ratio of the volume of
pore space in a unit of material to the total volume of material. Porosity is in turn
affected by:
Page | 1
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
1. Soil texture

2. Soil structure

3. Compaction

4. Organic matter.

c. Soil texture: (the relative proportions of sand, silt, and clay) is important in
determining the water-holding capacity of soil:

1. Fine-textured soils hold more water than coarse-textured soils but may not be
ideal.

2. Medium-textured soils (loam family) are most suitable for plant growth

3. Sands are the largest particles and feel gritty

4. Silts are medium-sized and feel soft, silky, or floury

5. Clays are the smallest sized particles and feel sticky and are hard to squeeze.

d. Soil Structure: refers to the arrangement of soil separates into units called soil
aggregates. An aggregate possesses solids and pore space. Aggregates are
separated by planes of weakness and are dominated by clay particles. Silt and fine
sand particles may also be part of an aggregate.

1. Platy - common with puddling or ponding of soils.

2. Prismatic (columnar) – common in subsoils in arid and semi-arid regions.

3. Blocky – common in subsoils especially in humid regions.

4. Granular (crumb) – common in surface soils with high organic matter content.

Page | 2
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
 Properties of soil Sand Silt Clay

small pores small pores

Porosity mostly large pores
predominate predominate

Permeability rapid low to moderate slow

Water holding
limited medium very large
capacity

Soil particle surface small medium very large

e. Soil Compaction: destroys the quality of the soil because it restricts rooting
depth and decreases pore size. The effects are more water-filled pores less able to
absorb water, increasing runoff and erosion, and lower soil temperatures. To
reduce compaction:

1. Add organic matter.

2. Make fewer trips across area.

3. Practice reduced-till or no-till systems.

4. Harvest when soils are not wet.

Chemical Properties of Soil:

Chemical Properties of Soil includes pH, Salinity, Cation exchange capacity (CEC),
Organic matter, C:N ratio (Carbon to Nitrogen).

Page | 3
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
a. Soil PH:

1. A measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a soil.

2. Neutral = 7.0

3. Acidic < 7.0

4. Alkaline > 7.0

5. Logarithmic scale which means that a 1-unit drop in pH is a 10-fold increase in

acidity.

Soil pH and plant growth:

1. Affects availability of plant nutrients (in general, optimal pH is between 5.5-

7.5).

2. Low pH soils (<6.0) results in an increase in Al. Aluminum is toxic to plants.

3. Affects availability of toxic metals (in general, more available in acidic soils).

4. Affects the activity of soil microorganisms, thus affecting nutrient cycling and
disease risk.

Soil Salinity

1. Potential problem in irrigated soils due to high evaporation rates and low
annual rainfall leaving salts to accumulate.

2. Salts can come from irrigation water, fertilizers, composts, and manure.

3. Salts can be leached by slowly applying excess water.

4. Three inches removes about 50% of the soluble salts.

5. Five inches removes about 90%.

Page | 4
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
b. Cation-Exchange Capacity:

A cation is a positively charged ion. Most nutrients are cations: Ca²+, Mg²+, K+,
NH4 +, Zn2+, Cu²+, and Mn²+. These cations are in the soil solution and are in
dynamic equilibrium with the cations adsorbed on the surface of clay and organic
matter. CEC is a measure of the quantity of cations that can be adsorbed and held
by a soil. CEC is dependent upon the amount of organic matter and clay in soils
and on the types of clay. In general, the higher OM and clay content, the higher
the CEC.

c. Soil Organic Matter:

Beneficial impacts of SOM on soil properties:

Physical - stabilizes soil structure, improves water holding characteristics, lowers

bulk density, dark color may alter thermal properties

Chemical - higher CEC, acts as a pH buffer, ties up metals, interacts with

xenobiotics (A xenobiotic is a foreign chemical substance found within an
organism that is not normally naturally produced by or expected to be present
within that organism).

Biological - supplies energy and body-building constituents for soil organisms,

increases microbial populations and their activities, source and sink for nutrients,
ecosystem resilience, affects soil enzymes. Each year, about 1 to 4% of nutrients
in the soil organic matter are released through microbial transformations to
become available to plants. Release is highest under warm, moist conditions and
slowest in cool dry climates. Microorganisms are the driving force for nutrient
release to plants.

Page | 5
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
 Soil Forming Factors

Soil Resources
The coverage of Earth’s surface with soil varies from place to place. Tropical
forests have thin soils that are poor in nutrients, while grasslands in temperate
regions have soils that are rich and well able to support crops. There are several
different classes of soil depending on how the soil is formed and where it is
located. An understanding of which class of soil is found in a particular location is
an important foundation to obtaining successful crop yields.

Soil resources need conserving as much as water resources do. Erosion is the key
process by which soil is created from rock and destroyed. Wind and rain are the
main factors that cause erosion of soil from agricultural areas, possibly converting
them into new desert. Some modern agricultural practices leave soil exposed to
Page | 6
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
the elements and thereby risk loss of long-term productivity because of soil
erosion.

Soil resources form a fundamental part of the environment. They provide the
physical base to support the productivity and cycling of biological resources,
provide the source of nutrients and water for agricultural and forestry systems
and fulfill a complex buffering role against environmental variability (ranging from
dampening diurnal and seasonal change in temperature and water supply to the
storage and binding of a range of chemical and biological agents). They are also
highly biodiverse. Soils themselves vary greatly – a soil with favorable mix of
physical, chemical and biological characteristics will have a much higher potential
for productivity in gross terms than one less favored. A broader ecosystem view
complicates this, however. For example, “poor” soils with low levels of nutrients
can have highly diverse flora and fauna with high levels of endemism. Accounting
for soil resources therefore has many dimensions. Soil loss through erosion and
other causes can be quantified – with the loss measured in soil volume and in the
nutrients and biological resources that are redistributed or destroyed. More
broadly, accounting for soil resources in terms of their types, volumes, nutrient
content, and other characteristics is relevant for a more detailed examination of
agricultural and forest productivity and the impact of changing land uses.

Characterization of soil resources: Soil resources are a form of environmental

asset providing a range of ecosystem services. A key feature of soils is their
delivery of supporting services including the formation of and functions of the soil
itself, nutrient cycling, water cycling, structural support of vegetation and soil
biodiversity.

Accounting for soil resources: Soil resources are measured through a series of
inventory processes – known collectively as soil survey. Typically, this produces
maps of soil types, soil suitability for various purposes, hazards/degradation
potential and, in some cases, maps of specific soil properties.

Page | 7
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
 Soil classification
Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on
distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use. Soil
classification is a dynamic subject, from the structure of the system itself, to the
definitions of classes, and finally in the application in the field. Soil classification
can be approached from the perspective of soil as a material and soil as a
resource. For soil resources, experience has shown that a natural system
approach to classification, i.e. grouping soils by their intrinsic property (soil
morphology), behavior, or genesis, results in classes that can be interpreted for
many diverse uses. Differing concepts of pedogenesis and differences in the
significance of morphological features to various land uses can affect the
classification approach. In soil survey, as practiced in the United States, soil
classification usually means criteria based on soil morphology in addition to
characteristics developed during soil formation. Criteria are designed to guide
choices in land use and soil management.

Many different soil classification systems has been devised in the world some
important of them are:

1) AASHTO Soil Classification System

2) Australian Soil Classification
3) Canadian system of soil classification
4) French soil classification
5) FAO soil classification (1974-1998)
6) International Committee on Anthropogenic Soils (ICOMANTH)
7) Unified Soil Classification System
8) USDA soil taxonomy
9) World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB) (1998-)

USDA soil taxonomy (ST): developed by United States Department of

Agriculture and the National Cooperative Soil Survey provides an elaborate
classification of soil types according to several parameters (most commonly their

Page | 8
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
properties) and in several levels: Order, Suborder, Great Group, Subgroup, Family,
and Series. The classification was originally developed by Guy Donald Smith,
former director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's soil survey investigations.

Taxonomy is an arrangement in a systematic manner; the USDA soil taxonomy has

six levels of classification. They are, from most general to specific: order,
suborder, great group, subgroup, family and series. Soil properties that can be
measured quantitatively are used in this classification system – they include:
depth, moisture, temperature, texture, structure, cation exchange capacity, base
saturation, clay mineralogy, organic matter content and salt content. There are 12
soil orders (the top hierarchical level) in soil taxonomy. The names of the orders
end with the suffix -sol. The criteria for the different soil orders include properties
that reflect major differences in the genesis of soils. The orders are:

Alfisols – soils with aluminum and iron. They have horizons of clay accumulation,
and form where there is enough moisture and warmth for at least three months
of plant growth. They constitute 10% of soils worldwide.

Andisols – volcanic ash soils. They are young and very fertile. They cover 1% of
the world's ice-free surface.

Aridisols – dry soils forming under desert conditions which have fewer than 90
consecutive days of moisture during the growing season and are non-leached.
They include nearly 12% of soils on Earth. Soil formation is slow, and accumulated
organic matter is scarce. They may have subsurface zones of caliche or duripan.
Many aridisols have well-developed.

Entisols – recently formed soils that lack well-developed horizons. Commonly

found on unconsolidated river and beach sediments of sand and clay or volcanic
ash, some have an A horizon on top of bedrock. They are 18% of soils worldwide.

Gelisols – permafrost soils with permafrost within two metres of the surface or
gelic materials and permafrost within one metre. They constitute 9% of soils
worldwide.

Page | 9
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)
Histosols – organic soils, formerly called bog soils, are 1% of soils worldwide.

Inceptisols – young soils. They have subsurface horizon formation but show little
eluviation and illuviation. They constitute 15% of soils worldwide.

Mollisols – soft, deep, dark fertile soil formed in grasslands and some hardwood
forests with very thick A horizons. They are 7% of soils worldwide.

Oxisols – are heavily weathered, are rich in iron and aluminum oxides
(sesquioxides) or kaolin but low in silica. They have only trace nutrients due to
heavy tropical rainfall and high temperatures and low CEC of the remaining clays.
They are 8% of soils worldwide.

Spodosols – acid soils with organic colloid layer complexed with iron and
aluminum leached from a layer above. They are typical soils of coniferous and
deciduous forests in cooler climates. They constitute 4% of soils worldwide.

Ultisols – acid soils in the humid tropics and subtropics, which are depleted in
calcium, magnesium and potassium (important plant nutrients). They are highly
weathered, but not as weathered as Oxisols. They make up 8% of the soil
worldwide.

Vertisols – inverted soils. They are clay-rich and tend to swell when wet and
shrink upon drying, often forming deep cracks into which surface layers can fall.
They are difficult to farm or to construct roads and buildings due to their high
expansion rate. They constitute 2% of soils worldwide.

Page | 10
By Arshad Iqbal Wani Introduction to Environmental Studies (GC-302)