Stocks (assets)
Flows (benefits)

Area of soil resources, by soil type

Quality of environmental asset

Excavated soil extracted

Excavated soil extracted - monetary value

Units

Area, e.g. hectares (ha)

Example methods / guidance / references

What are tiers?

Tier 1

Estimate using own judgement and observations

For example, estimate % of total land area with each soil type, multiplied by total land area.

Tier 2

Estimate using third-party professional estimates or public data

Tier 3

Model or measure based on site-specific surveys/sampling, remote or in-field sensing, laboratory analysis, etc.

Example data sources

Internal records

Third-party data sources

Maps of Australian soil types are available at the Australian National Soil Information System (ANSIS) Data Portal.

Site-specific measurements or model outputs

Data on area of soil resources by soil type for New South Wales are available on request at the Central Resource for Sharing and Enabling Environmental Data in NSW (SEED) – Experimental Environmental-Economic Accounts for NSW – Soil Accounts – 2021.

Notes

For Tier 1 it would be appropriate to use whatever local soil classification the user is familiar with, and for Tier 3, whatever soil classification is used by third-party soil information providers. For Tier 2, it would be appropriate to use a nationally accepted soil classification standard such as Soil Science Australia’s standards for soil types or the 28 major groupings used in the FAO’s Harmonized World Soil Database. Note that volume (in cubic metres) of soil resources by soil type could also be recorded – however, reliable data is unlikely to be widely available.

Last updated: 9th October 2024

Units

Mass, e.g. tonnes (t)

Example methods / guidance / references

What are tiers?

Tier 1

Estimate using own judgement and observations

Tier 2

Estimate using third-party professional estimates or public data

Tier 3

Model or measure based on site-specific surveys/sampling, remote or in-field sensing, laboratory analysis, etc.

Example data sources

Internal records

Third-party data sources

Data on annual production of identified mineral resources in Australia, by mineral, are available in the latest version of Australia’s Identified Mineral Resources.

Site-specific measurements or model outputs

Last updated: 26th September 2024

Units

Currency, e.g. A$

Example methods / guidance / references

What are tiers?

Tier 1

Multiply physical flow quantity by estimated monetary value per unit

Tier 2

Multiply physical flow quantity by estimated monetary value per unit

Tier 3

Multiply physical flow quantity by estimated monetary value per unit

Example data sources

Internal records

Third-party data sources

Site-specific measurements or model outputs

Notes

The value of soil resources as an asset is treated as part of the value of land as an asset (SEEA-CF, para. 5.301)

Last updated: 9th October 2024

Units

Various

Example methods / guidance / references

What are tiers?

Tier 1

Estimate using own judgement and observations

Tier 2

Estimate using third-party professional estimates or public data

Tier 3

Model or measure based on site-specific surveys/sampling, remote or in-field sensing, laboratory analysis, etc.

Example data sources

Internal records

Third-party data sources

Maps of various spatially modelled Australian soil variables are available at the Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia – Soil and Landscape Grid Viewer. 

Maps of various spatially modelled and measured Australian soil variables are available at Visualising Australasia’s Soils (VAS).

Site-specific measurements or model outputs

Notes

Work in progress - Feedback welcome

Last updated: 15th October 2024