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ON-SITE SOIL INVESTIGATIONS Brochure 5 in Soil Survey
Series Is The Soil Survey Good Enough?
The Soil Survey Soil Survey1 The Josephine County soil survey was mapped at two
levels of intensity or detail: The more
detailed 2nd order level and the less detailed 3rd order level.
The 1,040,000 acre Soil Survey has 157,532 acres (15%) of 2nd
order survey, 880556 acres (85%) of 3rd order survey, and 1,912 acres (0%) of
water.2 2nd order level soil surveys are generally appropriate
for general agriculture and urban planning. Map
unit size is generally no smaller than 10 acres but could be as small as 4 acres. It is our opinion that 2nd order level
surveys are better for proposed land divisions of 5 acres or less. For example, this level survey would probably be
appropriate to support a comprehensive plan and zone change from a Woodlot Resource zone
or a Farm Resource zone (range of 10 acres to 150 acre development proposal) to Rural
Residential minimum five acre lots. This does
not mean that a 3rd order survey will not do if no other data is available. 3rd order level soil survey usually have less field
verification and more remotely sensed data than the 2nd order units. This data is
considered extensive and could be used for range and community planning. Unit size is generally 40 acres or larger but
could be as small as 4 acres. Is The Soil Survey Good Enough? Accurate Enough?
How does the user decide if more detailed data or more accuracy than the order
level survey can provide is needed? What if
you have a 3rd order soil survey and you think you might need a 2nd
order? Is it too late when a soils
expert presents a professional position during a land use hearing? What are the criteria a Soil Survey user
should consider when making this determination? Consider
asking the following questions. ü Does
the order survey (tool) fit the job? ü
Is the information from the Soil Survey a logical answer when you ground
truth (walk) the land? Equity Issue.
How does the interested public that has decided better soils data is needed deal
with access issues? A major equity issue is
lack of access by all interested persons to conduct new soil surveys. The land use request applicant can gather new or
additional soils data on his land to meet the burden of proof requirements. Petitioners do not have this ability as access to
conduct their own soil surveys in rebuttal is normally denied. More Information Site Specific Work. When Soil Survey users need more detailed
data or more accuracy than the survey can provide, an on-site soil investigation should be
conducted. If the NRCS is unable to provide
these services, a private certified soil scientist/classifier could be hired to do the
site-specific work. Would you like to learn more about the Soil Survey of
Josephine County, Oregon and/or the soils of your property?
Consider contacting:
This brochure is one of five in the soil
survey series.
Would you like to learn more about citizen involvement
in land use planning? Contact a member of the
Land Use Committee of the Hugo Neighborhood. Disclaimer.
This brochure is as much about providing information and provoking questions as it
is about opinions concerning the adequacy of findings of fact and land use decisions. It does not provide recommendations to citizens
and it is not legal advice. It does not take
the place of a lawyer. If citizens use
information contained in this paper, its their personal responsibility to make sure that
the facts and general information contained in it are applicable to their situation. (Link) 1. United
States Department of Agriculture. Soil Conservation Service. December 1983. Soil Survey
of Josephine County, Oregon. (0R033) (Now Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS). 2. Soil Survey (page 13, Table 4, and Index
to Map Sheets, Soil Legend - those map unit names with an asterisk were narrowly defined
units (3rd Order Survey); without asterisk (2nd Order). |
© 2012 Hugo Neighborhood Association & Historical Society |