Research Shows Rare Soils in Danger

Few people probably know that the land area of the United States contains more than 13,000 soil series, or soil types. Defined by factors such as water saturation, carbon levels, and texture, a "series" is to soil what a "species" is to a plant or animal. Probably still fewer people know that they have a "state soil series." If you're in Illinois it's Drummer, in Indiana it's Miami, and in Wisconsin it's Antigo.

Now some of these soils may be in peril. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, revealed in the October 2003 issue of the journal Ecosystems that 508 soil series in the United States are endangered. The researchers called soils "rare" when they covered less than 25,000 acres. They labeled a rare soil "endangered" if more than half of its original area had been altered by land disturbances, such as housing developments and crops.

The Midwest is one of the most affected areas. According to the article, Indiana has the highest percentage of its rare soil series classified as endangered, at 82 percent. Illinois follows not far behind at 66 percent.

Robert McLeese, state soil scientist of Illinois says, "this concept of endangered soils kind of came out of nowhere," and adds, "All of a sudden these become a very hot political item."

Nonetheless, local scientists do see the value of the study. Mike Miller, a senior soil ecologist at Argonne National Laboratories, relishes the idea of local scientists going out to classify pristine areas of soil. "It's something we need to be considering in Chicago Wilderness; we need to get a better idea of the state of the soils ... and this should be one of the criteria when we make decisions on preservation."

— Allison Knab