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NSSH Amendment 5

September 1999

This is a summary of major changes made to the NSSH with this amendment. The official copy of the NSSH is the web version. These changes have been incorporated into that version.

1. Part 601.01

  • (c) Add to the responsibilities of the state soil scientist the following:
    -- supplementing and distributing a state subset of the national soil information system data.
    -- providing to the responsible MLRA Office, layers desired for map finishing in a compiled or electronic format compatible with digital map finishing. These include such layers as hydrography, public land survey, roads, and recommended cultural features to be used in the survey.
  • (d) Add to the responsibility of the MLRA office:
    -- coordinating and providing quality assurance for the map finishing process which may involve doing the job, or coordinating with a state, digital map finishing center, or other entity that does map finishing,
  • Add part (e) and (f):
    (e) NCSS Responsibilities for the Digitizing Units
    -- digitizing compiled map materials, and
    -- performing quality control of final digital data including spatial, tabular, and metadata.
    (f) NCSS Responsibilities of the Digital Map Finishing Centers
    -- electronically preparing soil survey maps for publication.
  • (g) Add to the responsibilities of acronym title="National Geospatial Development Center">NGDC:
    -- providing the process, procedures, and the training to generate map finished products,

2. Part 606.02 (f)

  • Add as the 2nd paragraph the following:
    -- Indicate whether or not small areas of contrasting soils or miscellaneous areas will be shown on the maps using point and/or line features. This will generally involve mapping such areas at a higher level of detail than the majority of the survey area. Such areas will be identified with map unit symbols and are included in the legend for the survey area.

3. Part 606.03 (b)

  • Revise to read:
    For maintenance of soil areas that have been previously published, the memorandum of understanding is to include the MLRA project plan and evaluations of all the soil surveys. Send these materials to the National Soil Survey Center with a letter requesting the Director, Soil Survey Division, to approve.

4. Exhibit 606-1 Memorandum of Understanding for a soil survey area.

  • Change the 1st paragraph under Specifications to read:
    Map units will be consociations and complexes of phases of soil series. The maximum size of contrasting inclusions in arable map units will be 5 acre areas. If needed by local users, contrasting inclusions of less than 5 acre areas may be shown by use of conventional or special symbols or mapped as point or line segments approved by the MLRA office. The maximum size of contrasting inclusions in nonarable map units will be 10 acre areas. The soils in each delineation will be identified by direct field examination. Systematic traverses will be made in arable map units at an interval close enough to detect 5 acre areas that require significantly different management, and in nonarable map units close enough to detect 10 acre areas.
  • Change the 4th paragraph to read:
    Field notes will be taken on soil qualities, soil properties, and soil performance to support soil interpretations for cropland, pastureland, windbreaks, rangeland, wildlife habitat, riparian area management, irrigation, rural and community development, recreation, engineering properties, and such groups as hydric soils, highly erodible lands, sodic soils, saline soils, sodic-saline soils, and other soils requiring special management.

5. Exhibit 607-2 List of Potential Sources of Equipment for Soil Surveys.

  • Add to Ben Meadows:
    Phone: 1-800-241-6401
    Web site:     www.benmeadows.com
  • Add Ben Meadows to
    Abney level
    Altimeter
    Area measurement systems
    Clinometer
    Compass, magnetic
    Global positioning systems
    Hand lens
    Penetrometer
    pH kit
    pH meter

6. Part 608.01 (b)

  • Replace this paragraph with the following:
    (b) The NRCS policy for and content of other reviews are discussed in the NRCS General Manual Title 340, parts 404.12. 404.13, and 404.14. NRCS conducts three types of reviews: Oversight and Evaluation Reviews, State Quality Reviews, and State Management Reviews. Each type may include soil survey issues.

7. Part 608.11(b)(1) Initial Field Reviews. (iii) Preparation of the Report.

  • Revise to read as:
    The leader of the initial field review prepares a report of the review. The report includes a "Quality Assurance Worksheet" that has been approved by the MLRA Office. Exhibit 608-7 is an example. In addition to the Quality Assurance Worksheet, the report includes:

8. Part 608.11(b)(2) Progress Field Reviews. (ii) Preparation of the Report.

  • Revise to read as:
    The leader of the progress field review prepares a report of the review. The report includes a "Quality Assurance Worksheet" that has been approved by the MLRA Office. Exhibit 608-7 is an example. In addition to the Quality Assurance Worksheet, the report includes:
  • Also revise the 9th included item to read as follows:
    -- a letter transmitting the report, in which the MLRA Leader highlights significant issues and items that are agreed upon; and

9. Part 608.11(b)(3) Final Field Reviews., (iii) Preparation of the Report.

  • Revise to read as:
    The leader of the final field review prepares a report of the review. The report includes a "Quality Assurance Worksheet" that has been approved by the MLRA Office. Exhibit 608-7 is an example. In addition to the Quality Assurance Worksheet, the report includes:

10. Part 608.11(c) Signature and Approval of Field Review Reports., (2)Representatives of cooperating agencies.

  • Replace "form NRCS-SOI-233" with "the Quality Assurance Worksheet" (see Exhibit 608-7)

11. Part 608.11(c) Signature and Approval of Field Review Reports.

  • Add:
    (3) State Conservationist. The State Conservationist has the opportunity to review and sign the report as a means of documenting the transfer of significant issues and agreed to items pertaining to the review.
  • Change: numbering on items (5), (6) and (7) to (4), (5), and (6).

12. Part 608.14

  • Delete this section.

13. Exhibit 608-3 Initial Field Review Checklist.

  • Item 26. Replace "SOIL-233" with "Quality Assurance Worksheet".

14. Exhibit 608-4 Progress Field Review Checklist.

  • Item 28. Replace "SOIL-233" with "Quality Assurance Worksheet".

15. Exhibit 608-5 Final Field Review Checklist.

  • Item 27. Replace "SOIL-233" with "Quality Assurance Worksheet".
  • Add: Exhibit 608-7 to subject index and contents

16. Part 617.01

  • Add as d, e, f the following:
    (d) The Memorandum of Understanding states which interpretations will be made for a soil survey area. The MLRA office, state soil scientist, and cooperators agree on whether or not to generate interpretations for miscellaneous land types and minor soil components. The Soil Survey Division encourages the entry of data and preparation of soil interpretations for miscellaneous areas. Omission of data elements is by joint consensus of the MLRA office, state soil scientist, and cooperators.
    (e) Completely populate the data elements that are used as criteria in an interpretation in order to generate reliable interpretations.
    (f) Completely populate the data elements for major soil components including map unit components classified as higher taxonomic categories. The MLRA office, state soil scientist, and cooperators should reach a joint decision for special situations where it is not practical to populate data elements for map unit components classified at a higher taxonomic category than soil series. If the range of properties is too wide for interpretations, these areas may not meet the requirements of the user defined needs of the survey.

17. Part 618.04 Albedo.

  • Change the formula in part 618.04(d) to read:
    Albedo, dry = (0.07 x dry color value) -0.12

18. Part 618.16 Drainage Class.

  • Remove the column of class codes in part 618.16 (e) Entries.

19. Part 618.17 Effective Cation-Exchange Capacity

  • Remove the text following the method citation in the definition.

20. Part 618.21 Erosion Accelerated, Kind.

  • Remove the columns of codes in part 618.21 (c) Classes
  • Eliminate Landslip erosion, highly deformed and Landslip erosion, slightly deformed
  • Change (d) to read:
    Entries. Enter the appropriate class for each map unit component. Multiple entries are allowable, but a representative value should be indicated.

21. Part 618.22 Erosion Class.

  • Remove the column of codes in part 618.22 (d) Classes.
  • Delete "code" in part 618.22 (e)

22. Part 618.23 Excavation Difficulty

  • Remove the reference to moisture.

23. Part 618.49 Restriction Kind, Depth, Thickness, and Hardness.

  • Remove the column of codes in part 618.49 (a)(2) and part 618.49 (d)(2)
  • Also remove the reference to codes in the paragraph preceding the list in part 618.49(a)(2).

24. Part 618.55 Soil Erodibility Factors, USLE, RUSLE.

  • Replace the reference to Agriculture Handbook 537 to:
    Agriculture Handbook No. 703, Predicting Soil Erosion by Water: A Guide to Conservation Planning With the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), USDA, ARS, 1997.

25. Part 618.56 Soil Erodibility Factors for WEPP

  • Change the statement:
    For cropland soils with less than 30 percent sand in part 618.56(a)(4) to read:
    Clay must not exceed 50 percent: if clay is greater, use 50 percent.

26. Part 624 Soil Quality

  • Add part 624 to the National Soil Survey Handbook

27. Part 630.03 List of Benchmark Soils

  • Add part 630.03(c):
    (c) Access and sort the list of benchmark soils by using the Soil Series Classification (SC) or Official Soil Series Descriptions (OSD) data access search routine. These files are on the National Soil Survey Center website at http://www.statlab.iastate.edu/soils/nsdaf/.

28. Exhibit 630-1

  • Change the classification in the examples to:
    fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid Typic Argiustolls for Alpha and
    fine, smectitic, frigid Argiaquic Argialbolls for Beta

29. Exhibit 630-2

  • Add the following statement under the exhibit title:
    (To search and sort by taxonomic terms, use the Soil Classification search routine)
     
  • Remove the classification of benchmark soils.

30. Part 655

  • Replace part 655 with the 1999 version.


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