Soil Geographic Databases — Europe

Index: (Sub)Continental | Individual countries

Europe

• INSPIRE geoportal
  This is intended as the entry point for all European data provided by governments, with compliant metadata.
   
• National soil data in EU countries, where do we stand?, Cornu et al. (2023) European Journal of Soil Science, 74(4), e13398, DOI: 10.1111/ejss.13398
  The result of "a standardized survey of EJP SOIL programme participants to identify the national and regional soil databases... their structure, the data they contain, the frequency of the sampling campaigns and the amount of sampling point locations they include, and their availability or openness". No links to the datasets but does show what is available
   
• European Soil Portal - Soil Datasets
  Primary and derived data covering Europe. 
   
• The European Soil Database (ESDB)
  1. Soil Geographical Database of Eurasia at scale 1:1,000,000 (SGDBE)
  2. Pedotransfer Rules Database (PTRDB)
  3. Soil Profile Analytical Database of Europe of Measured parameters (SPADE/M)
     Europe-wide soil profile databases, developed for various modelling projects (e.g. pesticide fate) SPADE-1 are direct measurements; SPADE-2 are inferred and harmonized for each Soil Typological Unit (STU) of the legend of the 1:1,000,000 Soil Geographic Database of Europe (SGDBE).
  4. Database of Hydraulic Properties of European Soils (HYPRES)
      
• Soil Databases 1:250.000
  "The European Soil Bureau Network recommended and endorsed the preparation of a georeferenced soil database for Europe at scale 1:250,000. The Manual of Procedures Version 1.1 (Georeferenced Soil Database for Europe, EUR 18092) sets out the proposed methodology, the concepts, the structure and the implementation of the new soil database." Currently available for A, CZ, D, I, GB-SCT.
   
• e-SOTER databases for W and E Europe
  e-SOTER is a methodology for producing SOil and TERrain bases according to a procedures manual. The databases are ESRI shapefiles at a nominal 1:1M scale.
   
• HoliSoils (Holistic management practices, modelling & monitoring for European Forest Soils) point database
  review the project's aims. The data will also be available via an ISRIC dashboard. 
   
• LUCAS: Land Use and Coverage Area frame Survey "regular, harmonised surveys across all Member States to gather information on land cover and land use"; 2009/12, 2015, 2018, 2022. Includes a topsoil database (0-30 cm). All dates are explained on this page, "The data are freely available and can be downloaded after prior registration through the Request Form." The following entries have direct links to some of the dates.
   
• LUCAS: Land Use/Cover Area frame Statistical Survey (2009)
  19,967 geo-referenced samples distributed in 25 countries; topsoils; analysed for the percentage of coarse fragments, particle size distribution (% clay,silt and sand content), pH (in CaCl2 and H2O), organic carbon (g/kg), carbonate content (g/kg), phosphorous content (mg/kg), total nitrogen content (g/kg), extractable potassium content (mg/kg) , cation exchange capacity (cmol(+)/kg) and multispectral properties.
   
• LUCAS: Land Use/Cover Area frame Statistical Survey (2018)
  Same, but updated to 2018. So the change in soil status over this decade can be studied. The methodology and results are described here.
   
• SOVEUR
  SOTER for thirteen countries of Central & Eastern Europe, at a scale of 1:2.5M.
   
• European digital archive on soil maps (EuDASM)
  Scanned soil maps available for countries in Europe.  

Individual countries

• European Soil Portal - Soil Datasets

  These links are active but the pages are empty. I am keeping them here in case they become populated again

  1. ESB links to national datasets
     national datasets including Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Demark, England & Wales (but Scotland is listed under a region of the UK, see below), Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Norway and Slovakia. Format and coverage vary widely. A few are downloadable, usually as generalized maps.
  2. ESB links to regional datasets
     sub-national (for now) regions such as Flanders (B), Wallonia (B), Bavaria, Niedersachsen, NRW, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein (D), Rhône-Alpes (F), Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli Venezia Giuliam Lombardy, Piemonte, Tuscany, Veneto (I), Galicia (E), and Scotland (UK).
      
• Digital Soil Map of the Netherlands / BIS Nederland (1:50k)
  "Bodemgegevens staan in de top vijf van gegevens, die het meest gebruikt worden door de overheid. Bodemkundig Informatie System (BIS) Nederland biedt overheden en bedrijven toegang tot bodemgegevens en scenario’s voor duurzaam bodem- en grondwatergebruik. Hiermee kunnen de effecten van maatregelen op de bodem en het grondwater worden doorgerekend. Het systeem bevat up-to-date informatie over de Nederlandse bodem, die op systematische wijze is verzameld en bewerkt."

  Now also available as WMS and WFS, "soon" as downloadable GIS files, and "soon" thereafter the field data points, from Publiek Dienstverlening op de Kaart (PDOK). Search for "Bodem".
   

• BIS-4D: Maps of soil properties and their uncertainties at 25 m resolution in the Netherlands
  Described in Helfenstein, A. et al. (2024). BIS-4D: Mapping soil properties and their uncertainties at 25 m resolution in the Netherlands. Earth System Science Data Discussions, 1-43. \url{https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-26}
   
• BRO Bodemkundig Booronderzoek (BHR-P) ATOM
  Van de Nationaal (NL) georegister: "Bodemkundig booronderzoek omvat de gegevens die voortkomen uit een bodemkundig georienteerde boring. In veel gevallen bestaat het bodemkundig booronderzoek uit niet meer dan een boormonsterprofiel. In het meest uitgebreide geval omvat het booronderzoek ook de resultaten van boormonsteronderzoek en boorgatmeetgegevens. Het boormonsterprofiel komt tot stand door de samenstelling van de monsters uit een booronderzoek macroscopisch te beschrijven."
   
• GIS SOL (France)
  "Le Gis Sol participe à la production de données nationales sur les sols et les centralise dans le SI Sol. Un certain nombre d’entre elles sont accessibles sous différentes formes: des tableaux de données utilisables dans un tableur; des services web interopérables avec des outils cartographiques SIG; des cartes"
  • Carte des sols sur le Géoportail
    Les Référentiels Régionaux Pédologiques (RRP) sont une représentation des sols à l’échelle du 1:250 000  

   

• Digital Soil Map of Germany / BGR Geoviewer
  Mit dem Geoviewer können die von der BGR angebotenen Geodatendienste verschiedener Kartengrundlagen aus mehreren Fachgebieten betrachtet und untereinander kombiniert werden. Bei Interesse können Sie die Geodaten zu den Karten auch herunterladen, indem Sie den Links zum Produktcenter folgen. Die deutschlandweiten, europaweiten und globalen Übersichtskarten sind in unterschiedlichen Maßstäben ab 1:200.000 vorhanden.
   
• Soil Composite Mapping Processor (SCMaP) for Germany
  "The Soil Composite Mapping Processor (SCMaP) ... use[s] ... per-pixel compositing to overcome the issue of limited soil exposure due to vegetation. Primary products are reflectance composites that will allow for a long term assessment of exposed soils. Further products include the distribution [and frequency] of exposed soils and statistical information related to soil use and intensity."; 1984 - 2014 (6 x 5-year composites)
   
• Environmental Atlas of Berlin -- Topic: Soil / Umweltatlas Berlin -- Themenbereich: Boden
  Bodenkundliche Kennwerte, Bodenfunktionen, Radioaktivität im Boden, Schwermetalle im Boden. Texte, Abbildungen, Daten und Karten werden zum Download in verschiedenen Formaten angeboten.
   
• Digital Soil Map of Austria / Digitale Bodenkarte von Österreich (eBOD)
  Die Daten werden in 1 x 1km Rasterauflösung mit allen parametrisierten Auswertungen angeboten. Für jede Rasterzelle werden zusätzlich der Prozentanteil der Summe aller Bodenformen, sowie der Prozentanteil der Hauptbodenform mit dem größten Anteil angegeben.
   
• Bodeninformationssystem BORIS (Österreich)
  "BORIS informiert über den Zustand österreichischer Böden. Das Umweltbundesamt bietet Bodendaten der Bundesländer und des Bundes in vergleichbarer und qualitätsgeprüfter Form online an."  
   
• NABODAT: das nationale Bodeninformationssystem (Schweiz)/; NABODAT: le système national d’information pédologique (Suisse)/
  "Das nationale Bodeninformationssystem NABODAT führt Daten zur Qualität von Böden in der Schweiz zusammen, harmonisiert diese und verwaltet sie. Die Bodendaten stammen aus Bodenkartierungen, dem Vollzug und aus Monitoringprogrammen von Bund und Kantonen."
  "Le Système national d’information pédologique NABODAT regroupe, harmonise et gère des données sur la qualité des sols en Suisse. Ces informations proviennent de cartographies des sols, de l’exécution de la législation et de programmes de monitoring de la Confédération et des cantons."  
   
• Database e cartografia digitale del suolo
  From the Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia agraria (CREA), Firenze (I). Various thematic soil maps of Italy
   
• LandIS -- Land Information System for England and Wales
  All digital soil data for these countries, subject to signing a licensing agreement and (often) payment. Always licensed, never freely-usable.
   
• Soilscapes of England and Wales (Cranfield University)
  Soilscapes is a 1:250,000 scale, simplified soils dataset covering England and Wales. It was created from the more detailed National Soil Map (NATMAPvector) with the purpose of effectively communicating a general understanding of the variations which occur between soil types, and how soils affect the environment.
   
• Scotland's soils
  Unlike the country to the south, freely-downloadable and useable 1:250k, 1:25k, and points from the national soils inventory on a 10 km grid, also topsoil Pb and Zn.
   
• Irish Soil Information System from Teagasc, the agriculture and food development authority in Ireland. The project has gathered together existing information and data from previous soil survey work in Ireland and augmented it with a new field campaign, leading to the production of a new national soil map at a scale of 1:250,000... An extensive range of soil types (or 'series') have been identified ... each of them different in properties, with different environmental and agronomic responses. For each, the properties have been recorded in a database that can now be used to satisfy the information required both for soils management and effective policy implementation.
   
• EstSoil-EH "A high-resolution eco-hydrological modelling parameters dataset for Estonia... 1:10 000 soil map: soil profiles (e.g., layers, depths), texture (clay, silt, and sand components), rockiness, and physical variables related to water and carbon (bulk density, hydraulic conductivity, organic carbon content)."