Abstract:
Ninety-four people from 35 countries responded to a questionnaire on the
use of soil maps. Most respondents had used soil maps in the fields of
agriculture, of forestry, soil conservation, environmental pollution and
protection. 98% of the respondents had used soil maps for locating
suitable areas for their professional work, 15% for teaching and research
and 13% had also used soil maps to help get financial assistance. Less
than half of the respondents had used interpretation maps derived from
soil maps. Most maps were produced by government soil survey institutes,
but 51% had also used soil maps produced by other government
institutions including universities and research stations. Only 19% had
used soil maps made by private soil survey organizations. Major
problems encountered in using soil maps include poor legibility, problems
of location on the maps, vague and complicated terminology. Most
respondents felt that soil maps are essential for their projects. Only a
few found soil maps completely useless. Based on the problems
encountered while using soil maps, recommendations have been made to
those involved in soil resource inventories. A revised questionnaire has
also been proposed following comments made by the respondents of the
previous one
