Web Soil Survey 2.1 — New Features

Search

Web Soil Survey now enables you to search for the answers to your soil questions — and locate soil ratings and reports that you are interested in.

• Enter one or more search terms.
• If desired, choose Advanced Search Options.
• Click the Search button.
• Search Results are displayed as links.
• Click a link to navigate to where the desired Result is found in the application.

Download Soils Data for your AOI

You can now download the spatial and tabular soil data, and a custom Microsoft Access template database that includes soil reports similar to those available in Web Soil Survey, for use in your local GIS applications to generate maps and reports as you wish. The soil data are bundled into the standard SSURGO download format as generated by the Soil Data Mart. You must have an appropriate version of Microsoft Access to take advantage of this new feature.

Better Map Layers

Web Soil Survey now uses more up-to-date and accurate map layers:

• Transportation — Local Roads, Major Roads, US Routes, Interstate Highways
• Water Features — Water, Streams and Canals
• Political Features — Urban Areas, Cities, Postal Code
• Background — more up-to-date imagery is being used as it becomes available. Recently, high-resolution color imagery was added.

Performance Improvements

• Map images you’ve already displayed are cached and re-used.
• When you navigate to the Suitabilities and Limitations For Use, Soil Properties and Qualities, or Soil Reports tabs, the application displays the cached results of the last rating or report you’ve run, instead of running it again.
• Instead of initializing all Use Categories, all soil ratings, and all soil reports when you first navigate to the Soil Data Explorer tab, the application only initializes the current Use Category, and only initializes each rating or report when you navigate to it.

Multi-Sheet Printable Maps

Now you can print large-scale maps “tiled” to multiple sheets of a size your printer can handle. The number of sheets used depends on the scale at which you choose to print the maps, and the overall size and shape of your AOI. Web Soil Survey can print to a single page, or in 2×2, 3×3, or 4×4 page layouts, each with different paper sizes.

Multi-sheet maps come with an “index sheet” indicating the proper arrangement of sheets.

An example of tiled map pages.

Tab and Folder Descriptions

To help you find what you’re looking for in Web Soil Survey, descriptions are now included for many of the application’s tabs and folders.

“Forest” Color Scheme

Ecological Site Assessment Tab is now available in every Use Category

Many users are not aware of the Ecological Site Assessment tab, because in the past it only appeared if the “Rangeland” or “Forestland” Use Category was selected. Now it is available in every use category (if Ecological Site data is available for your AOI). You can choose to view “Rangeland” or “Forestland” ecological site data, depending on the data available for your AOI.

Map Measurement Tool

Use the Measurement Tool to measure distances in the map. Per-segment, cumulative, and total distance are shown, in either feet/miles or meters/kilometers.

Soils Glossary

The Soils Glossary is now available from the Navigation Bar, as well as in Custom Soil Resource Reports. It is fully integrated with Search.

Safari and Google Chrome Now Fully Supported

Web Soil Survey now works correctly in Safari 3.1.2, on Macintosh and Windows, and Google Chrome 0.2.149.30 on Windows.