The Australian Soil Classification

by R. F. Isbell, The National Committee on Soils and Terrain

Overview

The Australian Soil Classification provides a framework for organizing knowledge about Australian soils by allocating soils to classes via a key. Since its publication in 1996, this book has been widely adopted and formally endorsed as the official national system. It has provided a means of communication among scientists and land managers and has proven to be of particular value in land resource survey and research programs, environmental studies and education.

Classification is a basic requirement of all science and needs to be periodically revised as knowledge increases. This third edition of The Australian Soil Classification includes updates from a working group of the National Committee on Soil and Terrain (NCST). The main change in this edition accommodates new knowledge and understanding of the significance, nature, distribution and refined testing for soils comprising deep sands, leading to the inclusion of a new Order, the Arenosols. The introduction of the Arenosols Order led to a review and changes to Calcarosols, Tenosols and Rudosols.

The Australian Soil Classification is Volume 4 in the Australian Soil and Land Survey Handbook Series. It is also available for free as a PDF via the CSIRO Publishing website.

Features:

• An essential reference for scientists to understand and communicate about Australian soils

• Includes major updates to knowledge, including the significance, nature, distribution and refined testing for soils comprising deep sands

• The ASC has been formally endorsed as the official national soil classification system

• Glossary and terms used are closely aligned with the definitions in Australian Soil and Land Survey Field Handbook ('The Yellow Book')

• The print edition is flexibound for field work

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781486314775
Publisher:	CSIRO Publishing
Publication date:	05/15/2021
Series:	Australian Soil and Land Survey Handbooks Series , #4
Edition description:	3rd ed.
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

R. F. Isbell

The National Committee on Soil and Terrain (NCST) is comprised of representatives from key federal, state and territory agencies.

Table of Contents

The authors iii

Acknowledgements vii

Preface to the third edition ix

Background 1

How to classify 3

Key to Soil Orders 12

Anthroposols [AN] 15

Arenosols [RE] 19

Calcarosols [CA] 28

Chromosols [CH] 35

Dermosols [DE] 41

Ferrosols [FE] 48

Hydrosols [HY] 52

Kandosols [KA] 67

Kurosols [KU] 74

Organosols [OR] 79

Podosols [PO] 85

Rudosols [RU] 91

Sodosols [SO] 98

Tenosols [TE] 104

Vertosols [VE] 116

Glossary 123

Colour Classes 149

References 151

Appendix 1 Use of codes and confidence levels in recording classification of soil profiles 155

Appendix 2 List of codes and equivalent class names 157

Appendix 3 Class names and equivalent codes, and the level at which they occur in the Soil Orders 162

Appendix 4 Analytical requirements for the Australian Soil Classification 169

Appendix 5 Approximate correlations between the Australian Soil Classification Orders and other soil classifications 171

Appendix 6 History of the development of the Australian Soil Classification 173

Appendix 7 Summary of changes in the third edition 178