Welcome to Scotland's soils
Scotland’s soils are an important natural resource. They play an essential part in all of our lives, providing us with a wide range of benefits. Some of these benefits are obvious, like growing food, while many are less clear, like filtering water, reducing flood risk and influencing climate.
This website provides data and information on Scotland’s soils. You can look at a range of maps and download the data associated with these maps. We also point to other useful sources of data and information. You can find out about what soils do for us, how well they do it and what happens when they are damaged.
Scotland's environment websites
Scotland's environment
For the state of Scotland's environment
Scotland's aquaculture
Data about the aquaculture industry in Scotland
Scotland's noise
View maps of noise from road, rail, air traffic and industry
NBN Atlas Scotland
Data on plants, animals and habitats in Scotland
Carbon and peatland 2016
The distribution of carbon and peatland classes across the whole of Scotland
Resources for land managers & developers
Information for agriculture, forestry, planners & developers
Soil erosion citizen science portal
Helping to improve our understanding of the UK’s precious soil resource
Help us learn more about soil erosion by telling us where you see it, what you think caused it, and where the eroded soil is now.
The state of Scotland's soils
The state of Scotland’s soil report pulls together soil information from a variety of sources.
It looks at the benefits soils provide, the processes that damage soils and the effects that damaged soils can have on people, the economy and the wider environment.
Glossary
Acidic soil
Soil with a pH of less than 7.
Basin peat
Poorly drained lowland soils with an organic surface layer more than 50 cm thick. Basin peat generally forms at low levels in distinct depressions.
Calcareous soils
Relatively thick soils, rich in calcium carbonate.
Our news
- Nationwide school science programme helps scientists discover effects of climate change on soils - March 23, 2018
- World Soil Day 2017 - publication of the first ever Global Soil Organic Carbon map - December 05, 2017
- Scotland's lost earth-built heritage overlooked - November 15, 2017
- Scotland's peatland: enduring through time - November 13, 2017
- BBC News: How much of your area is built on? - November 10, 2017
- How can burying pants tell you about the health of your soil? - November 10, 2017
