This map illustrates the distribution of soil parent material textures in the agricultural region of Alberta. Soil texture is defined by the relative proportions of the sand, silt and clay particles present. Soil textures are identified by classes using the Soil Texture Triangle illustrated below. The Soil Texture Triangle identifies the textural class of a soil at the intersection of the percent sand (x-axis) and the percent clay (y-axis). The percent silt of the soil is the remainder to add up to 100 percent. This resource was created in 2002 using ArcGIS.

Get consolidated soil data mapped on a county basis in a digitally stitched and standardized product. This soil survey data was mapped by a number of soil surveyors from the 1920s to the 1990s. The product incorporates soil information from a variety of map scales. The project has brought the individual county or regional municipality surveys together to reveal inconsistencies in soil data across county boundaries. The soil complex database contains other descriptive information including: * slope class * Canada Land Inventory (CLI) ranking * stoniness * drainage class * texture

Soil Survey (SL) Project Boundaries (STE_SOIL_PROJ_BOUNDARIES_SVW) contain boundaries (study areas) and attributes describing each SL project (project level metadata), and includes links to the locations of other data associated with the project (e.g., soil survey reports, polygon datasets, plotfiles, scanned maps, legends). This layer is derived from the [STE_TEI_PROJECT_BOUNDARIES_SP](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/1313fac7-2ea1-4c6b-995b-bd421b7ec3c6) layer by filtering on the PROJECT_TYPE attribute. Project types include: SOIL, TIMSOI, and SOILSW. SL Project Boundaries should be used in conjunction with [Soil Name and Layer Files](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/soil-name-and-layer-files) and [Soil Survey Polygons](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/soil-survey-spatial-view) which divide the landscape into units according to soil association, name, type, drainage, parent material, and texture. Soil datasets and resources can also be accessed through the [Soil Mapping Data Packages](http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/esd/distdata/ecosystems/Soil_Data/Soil_Data_Pkgs/) or the interactive mapping application [Soil Information Finder Tool](https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/air-land-water/land/soil/soil-information-finder). **Current version**: v12 (2026-06-22)

These Soil Mapping Data Packages include 1. a Soil Map dataset which includes the equivalents to [Soil Project Boundaries](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/soil-mapping-soil-project-boundaries), [Soil Survey Spatial View](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/soil-survey-spatial-view) mapping polygons with attributes from the [Soil Name and Layer Files](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/soil-name-and-layer-files), plus + A Soil Site dataset which includes soil pit site information and detailed soil pit descriptions and any associated lab analyses, and + The Soil Data Dictionary which documents the fields and allowable codes within the data. The Soil Map geodatabase contains the 'best available' data ranging from 1:20,000 scale to 1:250,000 scale with overlapping data removed. The choice of the datasets that remain is based on connectivity to the soil attributes (soil name and layer files), map scale and survey date. (Note: the BC Soil Landscapes of Canada (BCSLC) 1:1,000,000 data has not been included in the Soil_Map or SIFT, but is available from: [CANSIS](http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/slc/index.html). (A complete soils data package with overlapping soil survey mapping and BCSLC is available on [request](mailto:TEI_Mail@gov.bc.ca). Note that the soil survey data with attributes can also be viewed interactively in the [Soil Information Finder Tool](The Soil Map dataset is also available for interactive map viewing or as KMZs from the [Soil Information Finder Tool website](https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/air-land-water/land/soil-information-finder).

Geotechnical data comes from investigations performed by geotechnical engineers to obtain information on the physical properties of soil and rock underlying a site for proposed structures. The investigations include surface exploration and subsurface exploration of a site. In addition, site investigations will often include subsurface sampling and laboratory testing of the soil samples retrieved. The digging of test pits and trenching may also be used to learn about soil conditions at depth. Geotechnical data is relevant to our permafrost database as it contains logs of ice encountered at various depths.Yukon Geological Survey has been compiling geotechnical data from various organizations and branches. The main datasets being compiled are the following:Northern Climate ExchangeCommunity Services, Land BranchEnergy Mines and Resources, Abandoned MinesTransportation Engineering BranchAlaska Highway Borehole DatabaseAgriculture soil profilesDistributed from [GeoYukon](https://yukon.ca/geoyukon) by the [Government of Yukon](https://yukon.ca/maps) . Discover more digital map data and interactive maps from Yukon's digital map data collection.For more information: [geomatics.help@yukon.ca](mailto:geomatics.help@yukon.ca)

Soil Survey polygons contain soils spatial and attribute information utilized by the Ministry of Environment online Soil Information Finder Tool ([SIFT](http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/air-land-water/land/soil-information-finder)). The information pertains to soil survey data in the Province of British Columbia, as well as links to a variety of reports and maps. Polygons related to soil surveys can be made up of a complex of up to 3 components representing 3 different soil types. These components are aspatial and represent the amount in the polygon indicated by the PERCENT_x field for the component x. Each unique soil type has a soil name and generalized attributes such as drainage, texture and coarse fragment percent. The [Soil Name and Layer Files](https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/a3bc4cd3-0f1b-4a2f-bd88-76f821756d10) can be joined and related to each of the 3 components of the Soil Survey Spatial View polygons using the SoilSymbol field in the name and layer tables and the `SOILSYM_x` fields in the Soil Survey Spatial View.

The National Ecological Framework for Canada's "Soil Development by Ecoprovince” dataset contains tables that provide soil development information for components within the ecoprovince framework polygon. It provides soil development codes and their English and French-language descriptions as well as the percentage of the polygon that the component occupies. The soil development descriptions are based on the second edition of the Canadian System of Soil Classification (Agriculture Canada Expert Committee on Soil Survey, 1987).

This map displays the risk of soil degradation by water in the agricultural region of Alberta. Water erosion is a concern because it reduces soil quality by removing soil particles and nutrients, and reduces water quality if these particles are carried into nearby water bodies. The map uses five classes to describe the water erosion risk on bare, unprotected mineral soil: negligible, low, moderate, high and severe.This resource was created using ArcGIS, originally published as a print map in 1993 .

This map displays an assessment of soil erosion risk for the agricultural area of Alberta. Loss of protective residue cover through cultivation will increase the potential risk of soil erosion. The vulnerability of the soil to erosion combined with the intensity of cultivation determines the degree to which the soil may be at risk. The classes shown on the map were ranked from 0 (lowest risk) to 1 (highest risk). This resource was created in 2002 using ArcGIS.

This map displays the risk of soil degradation by wind in the agricultural region of Alberta. Wind erosion is a concern because it reduces soil quality by removing soil nutrients, smaller soil particles and organic matter. Wind erosion can reduce air quality during extreme erosion events and also reduce water quality if eroded particles drift into streams and lakes. The map uses five classes to describe the wind erosion risk on bare, unprotected mineral soil: negligible, low, moderate, high and severe. This resource was created using ArcGIS. It was originally published as a print map in 1989.