| Map layer | Data link |
|---|---|
| Carbon and peatland 2016 map | Scottish Natural Heritage |
| All other map layers | James Hutton Institute |
This shows the distribution of the main soil types across the whole of Scotland. It was originally mapped at the 1: 250 000 scale.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
This covers most of Scotland’s cultivated agricultural soils and adjacent uplands. It was originally mapped at the 1: 25 000 scale and shows more detail than the National soil map of Scotland.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
World Reference Base soil map uses an international soil classification based on soil characteristics, properties and horizons (layers).
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The national scale land capability for forestry map provides information on how well a piece of land could grow trees based on a number of factors including soil, climate and topography.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The national scale land capability for agriculture map provides information on the types of crops that may be grown in different areas dependent on environmental and soil characteristics.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The land capability map for agriculture (partial cover) provides information at a greater resolution than the national map on the types of crops that may be grown in different areas dependent on the environmental and soil characteristics.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Shows the soil carbon concentration in the surface layer of soil.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Available water capacity is the amount water a soil can provide for plants and so is a useful indicator of the ability of soils to grow crops.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Soil texture in Nitrate Vulnerable Zones provides information to help understand what management practices can be performed, and when, within Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs).
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Shows the distribution of carbon and peatland classes across the whole of Scotland. It gives a value to indicate the likely presence of carbon-rich soils, deep peat and priority peatland habitat for each individually-mapped area, at a coarse scale.
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© SNH available under an Open Government Licence.
The Carbon and Peatland 2016 map is based on soil and land cover map data produced by the James Hutton Institute. Used with the permission of The James Hutton Institute. All rights reserved.
Shows the sampling locations of the National Soil Inventory of Scotland, classified by the soil type found at each location.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Shows the soil parent material found at each National Soil Inventory of Scotland sampling location. This is the material that the soil was made from.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Shows the location of each National Soil Inventory of Scotland sampling point. The colour of the symbol relates to the lead concentration of the topsoil found at that point (in parts per million of air-dried soil).
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Shows the location of each National Soil Inventory of Scotland sampling point. The colour of the symbol relates to the zinc concentration of the topsoil found at that point (in parts per million of air-dried soil).
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has prepared a consolidated spatial dataset of peat depth measurement collected across Scotland. The information was collected during peat depth surveys conducted as part of various assessments carried out on sites that formed part of the Peatland ACTION project (2012-2019).
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© SNH available under an Open Government Licence
This map shows the inherent ability of soil to retain phosphorus (P) - the P sorption capacity (PSC). The classification is based on properties of the soil which relate to the soil association to which it belongs.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The map shows the vulnerability of subsoils to compaction by traffic. It covers most of Scotland’s cultivated agricultural land area. The subsoil compaction risk gives information on the likelihood of the subsoil becoming compacted due to heavy machinery in four classes (Extremely vulnerable, Very vulnerable, Moderately vulnerable or Not particularly vulnerable) based on the soil texture and the amount of water left in the soil after any excess has drained away (known as field capacity).
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The map shows the risk of the topsoil becoming compacted due to the passage of machinery. This map primarily covers the cultivated land in Scotland and provides information on the risk of topsoil compaction.The topsoil compaction risk gives information of the likelihood of the topsoil becoming compacted in 3 classes: High, Moderate or Low. The risk is based on the natural drainage class of the soil and the soil texture.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The map shows the risk of a bare soil being eroded by water under intense or prolonged rainfall and primarily covers the cultivated land in Scotland. Soils with mineral topsoils have been classified separately from those with organic (peaty) surface layers. The risk of soil erosion is shown in 3 main classes for soils with mineral topsoils; High, Moderate or Low. The risk of erosion is greatest on coarse textured soils with a low water adsorption capacity on steep slopes. Please note that as this layer has been produced using raster slope data the map has a "blocky" appearance.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The map shows the risk of potential pollutants and nutrients leaching through the soil to ground and surface waters. This map primarily covers the cultivated land in Scotland. The soil leaching potential gives information on the likelihood of a potential pollutant that is applied to the soil surface infiltrating the soil and leaching to a water course or ground water in three main categories (High, Intermediate and Low) with the High class being subdivided into 3 classes while the intermediate class is subdivided into 2 classes.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.
The map shows the risk of water flowing overland (runoff) carrying potential pollutants into water courses. This map primarily covers the cultivated land in Scotland. The digital dataset gives information on the likelihood of a potential pollutant applied to the soil surface running off the land to a water course in 3 classes: High, Moderate or Low and is based on fundamental soil characteristics such as depth to a slowly permeable layer, soil porosity and flow pathways through the soil.
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© Copyright James Hutton Institute.