National Cooperative Soil Survey
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
is a nation-wide partnership of federal, regional, state, and local agencies and institutions. This partnership works together to cooperatively investigate, inventory, document, classify
Soil classification
Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use.- Overview :...
, and interpret soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
s and to disseminate, publish, and promote the use of information about the soils of the United States and its trust territories. The activities of the NCSS are carried out on national, regional, and state levels.
Overview
The National Cooperative Soil Survey Program (NCSS) is a partnership led by the United States Department of AgricultureUnited States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
- Natural Resources Conservation Service
Natural Resources Conservation Service
The Natural Resources Conservation Service , formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service , is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and managers.Its name was changed in 1994 during the Presidency of...
of Federal land management
Land management
Land management is the process of managing the use and development of land resources. Land resources are used for a variety of purposes which may include organic agriculture, reforestation, water resource management and eco-tourism projects.-See also:*Sustainable land management*Acreage...
agencies, state agricultural experiment station
Agricultural experiment station
An agricultural experiment station is a research center that conducts scientific investigations to solve problems and suggest improvements in the food and agriculture industry...
s, counties
County (United States)
In the United States, a county is a geographic subdivision of a state , usually assigned some governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 of the 50 states; Louisiana is divided into parishes and Alaska into boroughs. Parishes and boroughs are called "county-equivalents" by the U.S...
, conservation district
Conservation district
Conservation districts are government entities that provide technical assistance and tools to manage and protect land and water resources in U.S. states and insular areas. There are more than 3,000 in the United States...
s, and other special-purpose district
Special-purpose district
Special-purpose districts or special district governments in the United States are independent governmental units that exist separately from, and with substantial administrative and fiscal independence from, general purpose local governments such as county, municipal, and township governments. As...
s that provide soil survey
Soil survey
Soil survey, or soil mapping, is the process of classifying soil types and other soil properties in a given area and geo-encoding such information. It applies the principles of soil science, and draws heavily from geomorphology, theories of soil formation, physical geography, and analysis of...
information necessary for understanding, managing, conserving
Soil conservation
Soil conservation is a set of management strategies for prevention of soil being eroded from the Earth’s surface or becoming chemically altered by overuse, acidification, salinization or other chemical soil contamination...
and sustaining the nation's soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
resources.
History
While the National Cooperative Soil Survey has involved multiple partners since its inception in 1896, Federal responsibility for coordinating partner efforts has resided within the USDA. However, soil survey responsibilities have moved several times within the USDA:- 1894 Division of Agricultural Soil within the USDA Weather Bureau.
- 1899 Name changed to Division of Soils.
- 1901 Division moved up in status to Bureau of Soils.
- 1927 Merged with the Bureau of Chemistry, forming the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils.
- 1938 Soils unit transferred to the Bureau of Plant Industry.
- 1942 Changed name to Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering, becoming part of the Agricultural Research Administration.
- 1952 Soil survey program transferred to the Soil Conservation Service (SCS).
- 1994 Name changed to Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Early history
The original Federal authority for the soil survey of the United States is contained in the record of the 53rd Congress, chapter 169, Agricultural Appropriations Act of 1896.Milton Whitney was the first Chief of the Division of Agricultural Soil. The division was created under the USDA Weather Bureau in 1894, but, with the inception of National Cooperative Soil Survey efforts, became the Division of Soils as an independent division within the Department of Agriculture. The early vision of soil survey was a survey that combined geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
with soil chemistry
Soil chemistry
Soil chemistry is the study of the chemical characteristics of soil. Soil chemistry is affected by mineral composition, organic matter and environmental factors.-History:...
. The men conducting the surveys were geologists or chemists; none had training in agronomy.
On May 3, 1899 with an appropriation of $16,000 Whitney began field operations. In four separate soil surveys about 720000 acres (2,913.7 km²) were mapped that first year. Cecil County, Maryland
Cecil County, Maryland
Cecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper...
, and Connecticut Valley, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, concentrated on tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
lands. Survey of the Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably West Valley City, Murray, Sandy, and West Jordan; its total population is 1,029,655 as of 2010...
of Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
and the Pecos River
Pecos River
The headwaters of the Pecos River are located north of Pecos, New Mexico, United States, at an elevation of over 12,000 feet on the western slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County. The river flows for through the eastern portion of that state and neighboring Texas before it...
Valley of New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
concentrated on alkali soil areas where irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
and land reclamation
Land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, is the process to create new land from sea or riverbeds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or landfill.- Habitation :...
projects were planned. Soil surveys focused on cropland or interpretations for cropland until the 1970s when the scope of the NCSS was expanded to focus on urban lands.
Of the four survey areas initiated in 1899, three were published the next year. These first surveys cost about 3/10ths of a cent per acre. , soil surveys cost about $3/acre.
Soil texture
Soil texture
Soil texture is a qualitative classification tool used in both the field and laboratory to determine classes for agricultural soils based on their physical texture. The classes are distinguished in the field by the 'textural feel' which can be further clarified by separating the relative...
was the main differentiating soil characteristic used in the early survey process. Soil series were soon to follow as groupings of soil type
Soil type
In terms of soil texture, soil type usually refers to the different sizes of mineral particles in a particular sample. Soil is made up in part of finely ground rock particles, grouped according to size as sand, silt and clay...
s. By 1906 Miami
Miami (soil)
The Miami soil series is the state soil of Indiana.The less sloping Miami soils are used mainly for corn, soybeans, or winter wheat. The steeper areas are used as pasture, hayland, or woodland. Significant area has been converted to residential and commercial uses. There are of Miami soils mapped...
soil series included 16 soil types from the glaciated regions and Norfolk series included 12 soil types from the coastal plain
Coastal plain
A coastal plain is an area of flat, low-lying land adjacent to a seacoast and separated from the interior by other features. One of the world's longest coastal plains is located in eastern South America. The southwestern coastal plain of North America is notable for its species diversity...
s. Several other characteristics were added by that time. They were soil color
Soil color
Soil colour does not affect the behavior and use of soil, however it can indicate the composition of the soil and give clues to the conditions that the soil is subjected to....
, organic
Organic matter
Organic matter is matter that has come from a once-living organism; is capable of decay, or the product of decay; or is composed of organic compounds...
content, soil structure
Soil structure
Soil structure is determined by how individual soil granules clump or bind together and aggregate, and therefore, the arrangement of soil pores between them...
, drainage, erodibility, and nature of subsoil
Subsoil
Subsoil, or substrata, is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. The subsoil may include substances such as clay and/or sand that has only been partially broken down by air, sunlight, water, wind etc., to produce true soil...
. Soil provinces were established and soil series were confined to their area. Series at first were identified where the soils formed
Pedogenesis
Pedogenesis is the science and study of the processes that lead to the formation of soil ' and first explored by the Russian geologist Vasily Dokuchaev , the so called grandfather of soil science, who determined that soil formed over time as a consequence of...
from the same accumulated parent material
Parent material
In soil science, parent material is the underlying geological material in which soil horizons form...
: glaciated, wind blown, alluvial etc.
Geological Survey
Geological survey
The term geological survey can be used to describe both the conduct of a survey for geological purposes and an institution holding geological information....
maps were generally unavailable and early soil surveyors used the plane table and alidade to develop their own base maps. Work for soil surveys was done at a mapping scale
Scale (map)
The scale of a map is defined as the ratio of a distance on the map to the corresponding distance on the ground.If the region of the map is small enough for the curvature of the Earth to be neglected, then the scale may be taken as a constant ratio over the whole map....
1 inch to the mile. Scale is pretty well standardized at 1:12000 or 1:24000. 6 different scales have been used in published soil surveys.
In 1913 Curtis Marbut was appointed Scientist in Charge of the Soil Survey, the position he held almost until his death. Marbut was Professor of Geology and Physiography at the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
from 1895 until 1910. As a geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
and geographer
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
his initial view was that soils were surface reflections of the geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
below them. Marbut changed to recognize soil science
Soil science
Soil science is the study of soil as a natural resource on the surface of the earth including soil formation, classification and mapping; physical, chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils; and these properties in relation to the use and management of soils.Sometimes terms which...
as distinct from geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
. Eugene W. Hilgard
Eugene W. Hilgard
Eugene Woldemar Hilgard was a German-American expert on pedology...
of the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
and Hopkins of the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
greatly influenced this change. The land-grant universities from the very start were close partners in National Cooperative Soil Survey. By 1920, most soil surveyors were graduates of land-grant universities and other agricultural colleges with training in soils and crops.
The recognition of soil science as a distinct discipline was also influenced by the Russian school of soil science and K. D. Glinka (1867–1927) in particular. These soil scientists characterized soils based on soil horizon
Soil horizon
A soil horizon is a specific layer in the land area that is parallel to the soil surface and possesses physical characteristics which differ from the layers above and beneath. Horizon formation is a function of a range of geological, chemical, and biological processes and occurs over long time...
s of the soil profile. This recognized soils more on natural boundaries. Previously the soil was divided into sections by 6 2/3 inch increments to 40 inches (1,016 mm) depth. Depths used were 0 to 7, 7 to 13, 13 to 20, 20 to 27, 27 to 34, 34 to 40 inches (1,016 mm). Forty inches was the depth of observation for a number of years, then later it was extended to 60 inches (1,524 mm) and subsequently to 2 meters.
In 1920 Marbut began his work on a soil classification
Soil classification
Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use.- Overview :...
scheme. In 1927 he published a translation of Glinka's The Great Soil Groups of the World and their Development from German to English. His classification scheme became the 1935 system that was modified to become the system published in the 1938 Yearbook of Agriculture, Soils and Men: the 1938 USDA soil taxonomy
1938 USDA soil taxonomy
The 1938 USDA soil taxonomy was a soil classification system adopted by the United States Department of Agriculture, now obsolete. The classification system used previously was developed and published in 1936 by C.F. Marbut, who was chief of the U.S. Soil Survey at that time. A drastic...
. At the highest level of classification the soils were divided into pedocal
Pedocal
Pedocal is a subdivision of the zonal soil order. It is a class of soil which forms in semiarid and arid regions. It is rich in calcium carbonate and has low soil organic matter. With only a thin A horizon , and intermittent precipitation calcite, other soluble minerals ordinarily removed by water...
s and pedalfer
Pedalfer
Pedalfer is composed of aluminum and iron oxides. It is a subdivision of the zonal soil order comprising a large group of soils in which sesquioxides increase relative to silica during soil formation. Pedalfers usually occur in humid areas...
s. Pedocals were used in the drier climates and referred to the carbonate
Carbonate
In chemistry, a carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid, characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, . The name may also mean an ester of carbonic acid, an organic compound containing the carbonate group C2....
rich soils. The Pedalfers began about at the Udic
Udic moisture regime
The udic moisture regime is common to soils of humid climates which have well-distributed rainfall, or which have enough rain in summer so that the amount of stored moisture plus rainfall is approximately equal to, or exceeds, the amount of evapotranspiration...
border and referred to soils rich in Aluminum (Alumen) and Iron (Ferrous). Alfer became the root term for Alfisols
Alfisols
Alfisols are a soil order in USDA soil taxonomy. Alfisols form in semiarid to humid areas, typically under a hardwood forest cover. They have a clay-enriched subsoil and relatively high native fertility. "Alf" refers to aluminium and iron . Because of their productivity and abundance, the...
.
Following 1938, classifying soil series according to the system met with mixed success. By 1945 the development of a new system began. The first version, termed an "approximation" was tested by the 1948. A series of approximations followed and the 7th approximation came out in 1960. The supplement to the 7th approximation was approved for use in 1965. USDA soil taxonomy
USDA soil taxonomy
USDA Soil Taxonomy developed by United States Department of Agriculture and the National Cooperative Soil Survey provides an elaborate classification of soil types according to several parameters and in several levels: Order, Suborder, Great Group, Subgroup, Family, and Series.- Example of...
, with 10 soil orders came out in 1975. It was revised into the 2nd edition with 12 soil orders in 1999.
In 1933 Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
created the Soil Erosion Service under the Department of the Interior. Hugh Hammond Bennett, after a 30 year career with the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, was first chief and within 2 years the Soil Erosion Service moved to Department of Agriculture as the Soil Conservation Service. The Soil Conservation Service (SCS) ended up with much of the budget and soils personnel of the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, but did not support the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils approach to soil survey.
The Soil Conservation Service (SCS) pushed farm by farm surveys using a utilitarian legend. The symbol indicated the soil properties. These symbols and surveys continued until the 1970s. Conflict existed between the SCS and the other partners within the NCSS during the 20 years from 1933 to 1952. Marbut did not feel that soil erosion threatened the food supply of the United States and wrote that to the National Academy of Science, in direct opposition to Bennett. Marbut died in 1935 on a trip to China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Charles Kellogg, a professor of soil science at North Dakota State University
North Dakota State University
North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, more commonly known as North Dakota State University , is a public university in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU has about 14,000 students and it is the largest university in North Dakota based on full time students and land size...
, became the new Chief of the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils. He produced the Soil Survey Manual of 1937 that gave direction on the procedure for soil survey to be used by both Bureau of Chemistry and Soils and SCS soil surveys.
During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, the soil survey efforts slowed. The Bureau continued it soil survey efforts but with reduced funding. The SCS was put in charge of the Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
(CCC) involving a massive workforce to build terraces and other demonstrations on agricultural lands. As a result, highly specialized studies, such as soil surveys, were limited. In 1942, the CCC was disbanded and SCS revived its soil survey efforts
Hugh Bennett promoted local interest and input in soil conservation. To achieve this, Bennett pushed for soil districts in each state. Each district board, made up of elected local landowners and farmers, determines the issues and concerns for their area, usually a county, with the SCS providing requested technical assistance. by the 1940s, most states had passed laws to form Soil Conservation Districts. In some states, like Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, Conservation Districts became dissatisfied with Federal technical involvement and SCS was excluded from the state. Consistent with this, states like Indiana directed their own cooperative soil survey efforts. In some states like Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, the newly formed districts, relying on SCS technical assistance, ignored scientific data and input from the universities, which responded by opposing the formation of additional districts. This was resolved by the expansion of the Cooperative Extension Service
Cooperative extension service
The Cooperative Extension Service, also known as the Extension Service of the USDA, is a non-formal educational program implemented in the United States designed to help people use research-based knowledge to improve their lives. The service is provided by the state's designated land-grant...
. It is now typical for all counties have a Conservation District, and a University Extension agent. Both Conservation Districts and Cooperative Extension are partners in the National Cooperative Soil Survey.
In 1951, the SCS developed the Land Capability System. By using factors such as flooding frequency, slope, rockiness and clay or sand content, the best use for the soil can be estimated. National Cooperative Soil Survey standards assure the soil survey data is consistent with the Land Capability Classification System.
During the Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
administration much of the Department of Agriculture was reorganized. In 1952, all soil survey work by the USDA was consolidated and responsibility for Federal leadership in the National Cooperative Soil Suvey partnership was given to the SCS. This included all mapping, classification, interpretation, laboratory services, map compilation and nationwide publication. The Bureau was then abolished and Kellogg became head of the USDA soil survey program.
After being assigned the responsibility of the entire soil survey program, the SCS shifted from making individual conservation plan soil surveys and land use maps to making complete county soil surveys. This reorganization did not set well with some universities and individuals that had been involved in the soil survey program up to that point. From 1899 until this time a number of agencies, both state and federal, had financial support to perform soil survey work. The consolidation of soil survey activities (and funding) into the SCS program was a hard pill for many to swallow.