Agricultural Regions of Alberta Soil Inventory Database (AGRASID)

Overview

The Agricultural Regions of Alberta Soil Inventory Database (AGRASID) is a spatial database of soils for Alberta’s Agricultural area. This database is ideal for regional, and field scale, land use assessment and decision-making.

The AGRASID 4.1 database structure also incorporates:

• Land Suitability Rating System (LSRS) variables
• more information to describe Alberta landforms which are part of the AGRASID model
• the relationship between AGRASID soil landscapes and AGRASID land systems

For further information on the compiling of AGRASID please, view the CAESA Soil Inventory Project Procedures Manual.

Recent updates

There were 2 minor changes to the spatial data in AGRASID along the northern border of Alberta and British Colombia, and one along the central border of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Correction of some minor data attributions errors identified since the publishing AGRASID 3.0 have improved the overall quality of AGRASID. These corrections amount to a less than 5% change in attribute content within AGRASID.

Updates to the database structure and variable naming started in AGRASID 4.0 is likely the most noticeable change from AGRASID 3.0. Where possible, these structural changes adhere to the Canadian Soil Information System (CANSIS) National Soil Database (NSDB) standards for storing national ecological framework spatial and tabular datasets. Keeping variables in AGRASID 3.0 that have no equivalent in the current NSDB structure maintained continuity between continuity between the current and previous versions of AGRASID.

Metadata

The metadata for AGRASID 4.1 describes:

• what AGRASID Soil Landscapes and Land Systems are
• how these spatial data sets can be accessed
• the use restrictions placed on them
• who AGRASID's custodians are
• how AGRASID is situated in geographic space
• what AGRASID contains
• how AGRASID is classified according to the International Standards Organization (ISO) 19115:2003 standards

Soil landscapes inventory

User’s manual

Initially the procedures manual was for the compilation teams conducting the Canada-Alberta Environmentally Sustainable Agriculture (CAESA) Soil Inventory Project. Then in 1998, the CAESA Soil Inventory Project Procedures Manual received an update and revision to accompany the digital soils information compiled during the CAESA project. The manual describes the procedures used and the attribute data captured during the project. It also provides users of the database some background information on the mapping systems used during the compilation of the soils database.

Download AGRASID for soil landscapes

The AGRASID 4.1 Soil Landscape download is property of the Government of Canada and the Alberta Government. It is available with unrestricted access. All AGRASID 4.1 components are contained in the following Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) spatial data formats:

• ESRI ArcGIS File geo-database (GDB)
• ESRI ArcGIS Shape file (SHP)

File geo-database (GDB) is the current standard spatial data format. ESRI ArcGIS Shape file (SHP) formats will continue to be available as an alternative for GIS software environments other than ESRI.

Download AGRASID 4.1
Soil Landscapes

Land system inventory

User’s manual

The CAESA Land System User’s Manual accompanies the digital soils information compiled during the CAESA project. The manual describes the procedures used and the attribute data captured during the project. It also provides users of the database some background information on the mapping systems used during the compilation of the soils database.

Download AGRASID for land systems

The AGRASID 4.1 Land System download is property of the Government of Canada and the Alberta Government. It is available with unrestricted access. All AGRASID 4.1 components are contained in the following Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) spatial data formats:

• ESRI ArcGIS File geo-database (GDB)
• ESRI ArcGIS Shape file (SHP)

File geo-database (GDB) is the current standard spatial data format. ESRI ArcGIS Shape file (SHP) formats will continue to be available as an alternative for GIS software environments other than ESRI.

Download AGRASID 4.1
Land Systems

Contact 310-FARM

Hours: 8:15 am to 4:30 pm (open Monday to Friday, closed statutory holidays)
Toll free: 310-FARM (3276) - no area code needed
Email: [email protected]

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