Back J. L. Smith, R. I. Papendick and J. J. Halvorson
Agriculture Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman,
Washington, USA
Full Paper (PDF File: 197KB)
Abstract
Soil quality can be defined for issues like productivity, environmental quality or human health. Good soil quality is a key to sustainable agriculture. If chemical, physical or biological components of soil degrade then soil quality declines and agricultural production cannot be maintained. Specific indicators of soil quality need to be identified and measured, and acceptable limits defined. Further, the data from several indicators must be combined meaningfully. We have developed a method to integrate multiple variables, such as those defining soil quality, into an index which can then be used to produce soil quality maps. This procedure requires the definition of critical values for each soil quality variable and a decision about which soil variables must be acceptable for a soil to be designated as having "good quality." The method is flexible enough to compare soils of different regions or simply to evaluate different management practices or soil treatments.