Soil is the thin skin of the Earths surface where the atmosphere meets the lithosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and of course the anthrosphere. Soils vary tremendously in their properties and ecological function. The job of soil survey is to map the distribution of the different soil types, describe these types, and interpret the maps in a form that is useful for land management and ecosystem studies. Systematic soil survey has been carried out for over one hundred years. As in other applied sciences, conceptual and technological advances are making soil survey more reliable, cheaper and useful. The internet revolution has also affected soil survey: information on the institutes that carry out soil surveys, their methods & techniques, soil classification systems, models, and interpretations from all over the World are at your disposal.... if only you know where to look These pages are dedicated to making this soil survey information accessible, and guiding you towards the most useful sites. Special emphasis has been placed on a comprehensive catalog of soil geographic databases.

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