National Cooperative Soil Survey Newsletter
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ational February 2008 Issue 42 N ooperative oil C urvey SS Newsletter In This Issue— Partnering to Map undifferentiated groups and complexes. Accurate soils data in this zone are Subaqueous Soils needed to help with restoration Partnering to Map Subaqueous projects. In 2006, Rhode Island alone Soils ............................................... 1 By Maggie Payne, Soil Scientist, Natural spent well over 10 million dollars on Mapping from East to West ................ 4 Resources Conservation Service, Warwick, Rhode Island. coastal restoration projects. By Spanish Translation of the Keys addressing the soil resource in the to Soil Taxonomy............................ 5 he definition of soils has Coastal Zone, the Soil Survey Program Review of The Worst Hard Time ......... 5 recently been extended to T can provide valuable soil data and A Note About The Worst Hard include subaqueous soils, or soils that interpretations. Time ............................................... 9 are permanently submerged under less Understanding the need for such North Central Region Work than about 2.5 meters of salt water or information in the “Ocean State,” Planning Conference ..................... 9 fresh water. Soil survey efforts along NRCS staff members in Rhode Island Southern Regional Cooperative Soil the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts took the lead in establishing the Survey Conference ........................ 9 (Delaware, Florida, Texas, Maine, institutional framework needed for Northeast NCSS Conference ........... 10 Maryland, Connecticut, New mapping coastal and subaqueous soils West Regional Cooperative Soil Hampshire, and Rhode Island) now and coastal and marine habitats in the Survey and Western Society of include the mapping of sub-tidal State. This framework, now known as Soil Science Conferences ............ 10 environments in shallow water bodies. the Mapping Partnership for Coastal Almost two-thirds of the worldwide Soils and Sediment, or MapCoast population currently lives in coastal Editor’s Note (www.mapcoast.org), is made up of the areas, and recent demographic studies Rhode Island NRCS, URI researchers Issues of this newsletter are suggest that in the next 25 years, 75 and scientists, and other State and available on the World Wide Web percent of the U.S. population will be Federal agencies. This partnership (http://soils.usda.gov/). Under Quick living within 50 miles of a coastline. incorporates multiple disciplines, Access, click on NCSS, then on With increased use and pressure, there integrating soil survey techniques and Newsletters, and then on the desired is increased demand to document the terminology with the technology issue number. condition of shallow waters, such as typically used in marine mapping. You are invited to submit stories for coastal lagoons, shallow bays, and Along with classifying benthic habitats this newsletter to Stanley Anderson, estuaries. An account of the soils in according to the NOAA Coastal Marine National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, these areas would provide valuable Ecological Classification System Nebraska. Phone—402-437-5357; information to coastal regulators and (CMECS), one of the goals of this FAX—402-437-5336; email— others about areas important for partnership is to create a seamless soil [email protected]. eelgrass or shellfish habitat, areas of survey that includes the mapping of sedimentation and shoreline change, coastal soils and shallow waters and potential dredge sites. according to NCSS standards. Soil survey data within the Coastal Zone (which includes the beaches, duneland, and marshes along with the Mapping and Analysis landscapes submerged by shallow water) have been shown to be missing The techniques used in mapping (subaqueous soils), outdated and subaqueous soils are similar to those inaccurate because of shoreline used in a traditional survey of deposition and erosion, or related to terrestrial soils. Mapping the soils that are inadequately mapped in subaqueous soils involves a few 1 NCSS Newsletter additional obstacles. Because water value. The formation of sulfides is a various soils in order to create cover keeps mappers from easily major soil-forming factor in these soils. interpretations for those soils. identifying landforms, vegetation, and Sulfides accumulate in the form of Additional research on carbon surface stoniness, the MapCoast pyrite and monosulfides from the sequestration, eelgrass suitability, and Partnership employs such technology anaerobic reduction of sulfate from shellfish growth rates also is underway. as side-scan sonar, sediment profile seawater. MapCoast partners have These studies will result in a better imaging, and underwater cameras to studied the rate of sulfide oxidation in understanding of the interpretations determine landscape units. Instead of that can be made on the basis of a using topographic maps to determine subaqueous soil map of the region. landscape position, subaqueous soil One of the major benefits of mapping uses bathymetric maps to mapping these areas under the Soil identify landscapes and landforms. Survey Program is the use of the Digging soil pits to observe classification system in Soil Taxonomy, subaqueous soils within these units is which provides a standard all but impossible, so instead of methodology for describing and shovels, scientists use augers and other communicating information about tools, such as peat samplers and these soils. Initially, subaqueous soils vibracores, to obtain the samples. were classified dominantly as Aquents. Complete soil descriptions are A proposed new suborder defines all made for each sample taken, and lab submerged and subaqueous soils as data analysis is performed on all Wassents, from the term “wasser” vibracore samples. Two very important (German for water). Wassents would be characteristics of subaqueous soils that the first suborder to classify out under are not typically described in terrestrial Entisols and would enable more soils are incubation pH (an indication succinct naming conventions for these of sulfide content) and fluidity or n- The tools used in mapping soils in shallow soils. water commonly are the same as those Shallow water and intertidal areas used in mapping terrestrial soils, such as are vital to the ecologic and economic augers. well-being of our coasts, but soils in these locations have been largely ignored by soil and marine scientists alike. As aquaculture, recreation, and development pressures increase, there is a vital need to provide information about these areas in order to best manage the nation’s coastal zones. To date, the MapCoast Partnership has mapped over 8,000 acres of coastal lagoons and bays in Rhode Island, collected 275 soil cores and pedon descriptions, conducted three end-user conferences, and provided outreach of our work in national conferences, news articles, features, and publications. It is actively working to improve our mapping protocol and establish a Jim Turenne, Rhode Island Assistant State Soil Scientist, demonstrates the use of a shallow water mapping center in the vibracore to collect a subaqueous soil State. Utilizing funding from NOAA, core. A soil sample showing a buried marsh horizon. the partnership just completed its first 2 NCSS Newsletter year of a 2-year study to develop a this publication, contact Jim Turenne at vol4no1. Video news features of mapping protocol for subaqueous soils. 401-822-8830 or view the online copy MapCoast in action can be viewed at In September of 2007, Craig Ditzler at http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu/41N/ http://nesoil.com/Video.htm. (a former Rhode Island resident), Karl Hipple, Philip Schonenberg, and Bob Dobos from the National Soil Survey Center toured the subaqueous soils mapping effort underway in Connecticut and Rhode Island. The crew spent some time aboard the NRCS research boats, collected and described a soil vibracore from a washover fan slope, toured the URI Pedology Laboratory, and discussed data needs and interpretations. The results of the tour include several proposals involving taxonomy and some new data elements that need to be added to NASIS. The MapCoast Partnership was recently featured in 41 °N, a publication of RI Sea Grant and URI Coastal Institute. To receive a copy of Bob Dobos and Don Parizek observing an eelgrass bed in Little Narragansett Bay. Mark Stolt (URI), Al Averill (MO 12), and Karl Hipple (NSSC) describing a soil NRCS staff from the National Soil Survey Center and from Connecticut and Rhode Island cutting core. a vibracore open at Ninigret Pond. 3 NCSS Newsletter Mapping from East to scientist in a real-life, hands-on Since leaving Arkansas, I have experience in which I had no choice mapped more than 16,000 acres in West but to sink or swim. The solution was Lamar County, Alabama, and more Arkansas soil scientist expands to take a year and do nothing but map. than 11,000 acres in Sevier County, experience on new horizons. Only because of the detail Utah. I am currently on a detail in the By D’andre L. Yancey, Soil Scientist, USDA, opportunities around the country could Mojave Desert in California. Natural Resources Conservation Service. this plan come to realization. Even though some people may I proposed this idea to Luis consider the frequent moves a sacrifice, hen I was a young Hernandez, State Soil Scientist in I would not change any part of this W professional, new to the Arkansas, and he agreed that this detail experience. The experience has helped discipline of soil science, the first could be beneficial to me and to me to grow personally