Salinity

Soil Salinity maps of the Emilia-Romagna plain

Soil salinity is the soluble salt content in the soil, mainly chlorides (Cl^-), sulphates (SO₄^2-),bicarbonates (HCO₃^-) and different types of carbonates (CO₃^2-): calcium (Ca²⁺), magnesium (Mg²⁺), sodium (Na⁺) and potassium (K⁺). The problem of soil salinisation (the process of increasing the salt content) is considered a threat and a soil degradation element in the Communication from the European Commission "Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection” (COM/2006/0231). In this document soil salinisation has been proposed as a research field: “Further research is necessary to close the gaps in knowledge about soil and strengthen the foundation for policies”.

Following these indications and in accordance with the Regional Agricultural Extension Service salinity maps of the soils of Emilia-Romagna plain at 1:250,000 scale (first/second edition) have been prepared.

Salt efflorescence on tomatoes in Mezzano Valley (photo by S. Raimondi)

Salt efflorescence affecting tomato plant growth in Mezzano valley
(photo by Raimondi)

Soil salinity maps describe the status of salinity in topsoil (layer 0-50 cm) and subsoil (layer 50-100 cm), using the electrical conductivity of saturated paste extract at 25°C (dS/m). ECe values are classified according to Soil Survey Manual (1993).

These maps are a first regional-scale spatial representation derived by geo-statistical analysis on point data collected in different soil surveys.

Available maps

Electrical conductivity ECe(dS/m), layer 0-50

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Electrical conductivity ECe(dS/m), layer 50-100

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Web mapping

Where to query and download soil and thematic maps.

	Soils of Emilia-Romagna The website provides access to every soil map at scales from 1:1Mk to 1:50k and to all derived thematic maps on Google Earth. (Note: you must have Google Earth installed on your computer, visit Google to download Google Earth for free).
	Soil maps of Emilia-Romagna region The website provides access to 1:50k soil map (plain and hills), point data (heavy metal monitoring, extension service soil analyses, shallow water table measurement sites) and a selection of derived thematic maps. Historical maps, land use maps, geological maps and regional park maps are available as well. (Note: to view the website pop-up blocker has to be disabled).
	Geo-Catalog You can query and download metadata and data in open data format (shapefiles, WMS, CSV and TXT tables).