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Preface <br />Soil surveys contain information that affects land use planning in survey areas. They <br />highlight soil limitations that affect various land uses and provide information about <br />the properties of the soils in the survey areas. Soil surveys are designed for many <br />different users, including farmers, ranchers, foresters, agronomists, urban planners, <br />community officials, engineers, developers, builders, and home buyers. Also, <br />conservationists, teachers, students, and specialists in recreation, waste disposal, <br />and pollution control can use the surveys to help them understand, protect, or enhance <br />the environment. <br />Various land use regulations of Federal, State, and local governments may impose <br />special restrictions on land use or land treatment. Soil surveys identify soil properties <br />that are used in making various land use or land treatment decisions. The information <br />is intended to help the land users identify and reduce the effects of soil limitations on <br />various land uses. The landowner or user is responsible for identifying and complying <br />with existing laws and regulations. <br />Although soil survey information can be used for general farm, local, and wider area <br />planning, onsite investigation is needed to supplement this information in some cases. <br />Examples include soil quality assessments (http://www.nres.usda.gov/wps/portal/ <br />nres/main/soils/health/) and certain conservation and engineering applications. For <br />more detailed information, contact your local USDA Service Center (http:// <br />offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app?agency=nres) or your NRCS State Soil <br />Scientist (http://www.nres.usda.gov/wps/portal/nres/detail/soils/contactus/? <br />cid=nresl42p2_053951). <br />Great differences in soil properties can occur within short distances. Some soils are <br />seasonally wet or subject to flooding. Some are too unstable to be used as a <br />foundation for buildings or roads. Clayey or wet soils are poorly suited to use as septic <br />tank absorption fields. A high water table makes a soil poorly suited to basements or <br />underground installations. <br />The National Cooperative Soil Survey is a joint effort of the United States Department <br />of Agriculture and other Federal agencies, State agencies including the Agricultural <br />Experiment Stations, and local agencies. The Natural Resources Conservation <br />Service (NRCS) has leadership for the Federal part of the National Cooperative Soil <br />Survey. <br />Information about soils is updated periodically. Updated information is available <br />through the NRCS Web Soil Survey, the site for official soil survey information. <br />The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs <br />and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where <br />applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual <br />orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or a part of an <br />individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited <br />bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means <br />2 <br />