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Soil guideline values (Eco-SGVs) developed to protect terrestrial biota provide a useful means for assessing potential environmental impact of contaminants.

An improved understanding of soil water holding properties include better land management practices through irrigation scheduling, more accurate environmental reporting and regulation of reduced nutrient leaching.

In this study we investigate the effect of irrigation on soil organic matter to determine the importance of region, soil type and irrigation duration. The ultimate aim is to identify where and how irrigation can be used to maintain or increase soil organic matter and the multiple associated benefits.

Mitigating the numerous impacts that fine sediment has in rivers requires a catchment-wide approach to reducing soil erosion. 

Assessing the spatial extent of hill country forage cropping and intensive grazing, as well as the severity and timing of de-vegetation that results from these practices.

Improving our knowledge of the soils on Banks Peninsula and other hilly land in New Zealand is vital to making better land use and management decisions to safeguard and enhance the benefits of the New Zealand environment.

The new irrigation scheduling and measurement systems developed as part of the programme will enable New Zealand’s farmers to make effective irrigation decisions to improve productivity, reduce costs, and lessen the negative environmental impacts of overwatering.

New Zealand’s managed grasslands occupy more than half the country’s total land area. Soil organic carbon stocks are inherently spatially and temporally variable, so sampling at field sites is problematic. A fit-for-purpose method is being designed to monitor soil carbon stocks at approximate 5-year intervals over upcoming decades.

A study to produce a nationwide baseline soil carbon measurement to improve New Zealand’s ability to report greenhouse gas emissions and removals under international climate change agreements.

Strengthening the science that underpins New Zealand's soil information system. NextGen S-map will provide cost-effective mapping, as well as fit-for-purpose, multi-scale soil information.

Our Land and Water National Science Challenge aims to preserve the most fundamental treasures of our country – our land, water and associated ecosystems – while producing value from those same treasures.

We are investigating on-farm solutions to reduce the environmental impact of intensive irrigated pastoral agriculture while maintaining productivity and profitability.

SedNetNZ is an erosion model that predicts the generation and transport of sediment through river networks, based on a relatively simple physical representation of hillslope and channel processes at small sub-catchment scale.

Greater Wellington is responsible for the management of the region's natural resources. By mapping the soils in the region using S-map decision making will be improved.

A project on exploring cost-effective ways of targeting land-based erosion control in the hope of slowing the damage and improving water quality.

An integrated soil health framework that provides a comprehensive view of soil health and resilience and can be used by a wide range of end-users.