Abstract
Abstract. Spatial information on soil function fulfillment (SFF) is increasingly being used to inform decision-making in spatial planning programs to support sustainable use of soil resources. Soil function maps visualize soils abilities to fulfill their functions, e.g., regulating water and nutrient flows, providing habitats, and supporting biomass production based on soil properties. Such information must be reliable for informed and transparent decision-making in spatial planning programs. In this study, we add to the transparency of soil function maps by (1) indicating uncertainties arising from the prediction of soil properties generated by digital soil mapping (DSM) that are used for soil function assessment (SFA) and (2) showing the response of different SFA methods to the propagation of uncertainties through the assessment. For a study area of 170 km2 in the Swiss Plateau, we map 10 static soil sub-functions for agricultural soils for a spatial resolution of 20 × 20 m together with their uncertainties. Mapping the 10 soil sub-functions using simple ordinal assessment scales reveals pronounced spatial patterns with a high variability of SFF scores across the region, linked to the inherent properties of the soils and terrain attributes and climate conditions. Uncertainties in soil properties propagated through SFA methods generally lead to substantial uncertainty in the mapped soil sub-functions. We propose two types of uncertainty maps that can be readily understood by stakeholders. Cumulative distribution functions of SFF scores indicate that SFA methods respond differently to the propagated uncertainty of soil properties. Even where methods are comparable on the level of complexity and assessment scale, their comparability in view of uncertainty propagation might be different. We conclude that comparable uncertainty indications in soil function maps are relevant to enable informed and transparent decisions on the sustainable use of soil resources.
Highlights
Human wellbeing relies on soil resources, and soil should be better integrated into ecosystem service frameworks that inform decision-making and environmental policies (Dominati et al, 2010)
Soil acts in multi-functional ways, and fulfills many functions in the regulation of the nutrient and water cycles, in carbon sequestration, or in the filtering of chemical compounds, providing biodiversity and habitats for flora and fauna, and it is essential for the production of food, fiber, and biomass (Haygarth and Ritz, 2009; Adhikari and Hartemink, 2016)
Soil function assessment (SFA) entails the rating of soils according to their capacity to fulfill an individual soil function, the so-called soil function fulfillment (SFF)
Summary
Human wellbeing relies on soil resources, and soil should be better integrated into ecosystem service frameworks that inform decision-making and environmental policies (Dominati et al, 2010). The concept of soil function has increasingly been applied to reveal the role played by soils in sustaining the wellbeing of humans and of society, emphasizing the multifunctionality of soils and their chemical, physical, and biological properties (EC, 2006; Haygarth and Ritz, 2009; Tóth et al, 2013; Dominati et al, 2014; Schulte et al, 2014; Schwilch et al, 2016; Makó et al, 2017). Maps that enable visualization of SFF, so-called soil function maps, are well suited to communicating the importance of soils to spatial planners and other disciplines (Sanchez et al, 2009; Haslmayr et al, 2016) and can inform stakeholders on the role of soils in society and the environment (Haygarth and Ritz, 2009; Bouma, 2010; Miller, 2012). The European soil protection strategy (EC, 2006), even though not adopted, brought the domain of soil functions into public discussions
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