18
Conclusion: Global Context, Formation
Pathways, Mapping, and Assessment
of the Soils of Aotearoa New Zealand
The soils of New Zealand can be studied nowhere else but in New Zealand and if we are to play a worthy part
in helping to solve our country’s problems it is our clear duty to pursue these studies…. To know and
understand our soils and their relations with their environment, their distribution and their properties, the
processes operating within them, the changes that are occurring or can be induced, and the significance of all
these to human activities, these are the goals of soil science.
—Norman H. Taylor 1955.
Abstract
Soils in Aotearoa New Zealand are diverse. Soils of all
12 orders in Soil Taxonomy occur in New Zealand, which
is unusual for a relatively small land area. Also, all the
soil orders of the New Zealand Soil Classification can be
identified elsewhere in the world. However, some features
of New Zealand soils are globally uncommon including
the large area of Pumice Soils; the world’s oldest
Allophanic Soils; Pallic Soils formed in loess with
minimal calcium carbonate and often with fragipans;
Ultic Soils with podzol-like morphologies including
distinctive ‘egg-cup’ E horizons and densipans;
Perch-gley Podzol Soils on the West Coast of South
Island; extensive Brown Soils that mainly lack subsoil
illuvial clay; relatively high soil carbon contents in
topsoils, and yet few soils that have deep (>25 cm) dark
topsoils; and the ‘dry permafrost’ soils of the McMurdo
Dry Valleys in Antarctica. Ten methods used in New
Zealand to evaluate soils and assist in land management
decisions are described, ranging from traditional knowledge, through digital soil mapping, concepts of high-class
soils, soil versatility, and soil vulnerability, to complex
technical evaluation systems including ecosystem service
modelling. Aotearoa’s diverse and productive soils are a
life-supporting taonga/treasure which all need to treat
with kaitiakitanga/care.
18.1 Introduction
In the previous chapters, the 15 New Zealand soil orders,
along with Antarctic Gelisols/Cryosols, were reviewed
focussing on the features that make the soils of each order
distinct. This chapter seeks to take a wider view. The distinctiveness and diversity of New Zealand soils in a global
context are discussed. The major genetic pathways that are
active in developing the diverse soils that form in New
Zealand are reviewed. Finally, the main soil and land evaluation tools that are used to develop and disseminate
information about the soils of New Zealand and their use and
management are briefly reviewed. A variety of approaches
has been developed to evaluate soils and their associated
landscapes of which ten are discussed here.
18.2 New Zealand Soils in a Global Context
18.2.1 Introduction
It is informative to compare New Zealand soils with those in
other countries to understand our ‘pedological place’ in the
world. The question of the distinctiveness of New Zealand
soils is important for the person who wishes to import or
export soil-based knowledge and for the application of
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
A. E. Hewitt et al., The Soils of Aotearoa New Zealand, World Soils Book Series,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64763-6_18
289
Conclusion: Global Context, Formation
Pathways, Mapping, and Assessment
of the Soils of Aotearoa New Zealand
The soils of New Zealand can be studied nowhere else but in New Zealand and if we are to play a worthy part
in helping to solve our country’s problems it is our clear duty to pursue these studies…. To know and
understand our soils and their relations with their environment, their distribution and their properties, the
processes operating within them, the changes that are occurring or can be induced, and the significance of all
these to human activities, these are the goals of soil science.
—Norman H. Taylor 1955.
Abstract
Soils in Aotearoa New Zealand are diverse. Soils of all
12 orders in Soil Taxonomy occur in New Zealand, which
is unusual for a relatively small land area. Also, all the
soil orders of the New Zealand Soil Classification can be
identified elsewhere in the world. However, some features
of New Zealand soils are globally uncommon including
the large area of Pumice Soils; the world’s oldest
Allophanic Soils; Pallic Soils formed in loess with
minimal calcium carbonate and often with fragipans;
Ultic Soils with podzol-like morphologies including
distinctive ‘egg-cup’ E horizons and densipans;
Perch-gley Podzol Soils on the West Coast of South
Island; extensive Brown Soils that mainly lack subsoil
illuvial clay; relatively high soil carbon contents in
topsoils, and yet few soils that have deep (>25 cm) dark
topsoils; and the ‘dry permafrost’ soils of the McMurdo
Dry Valleys in Antarctica. Ten methods used in New
Zealand to evaluate soils and assist in land management
decisions are described, ranging from traditional knowledge, through digital soil mapping, concepts of high-class
soils, soil versatility, and soil vulnerability, to complex
technical evaluation systems including ecosystem service
modelling. Aotearoa’s diverse and productive soils are a
life-supporting taonga/treasure which all need to treat
with kaitiakitanga/care.
18.1 Introduction
In the previous chapters, the 15 New Zealand soil orders,
along with Antarctic Gelisols/Cryosols, were reviewed
focussing on the features that make the soils of each order
distinct. This chapter seeks to take a wider view. The distinctiveness and diversity of New Zealand soils in a global
context are discussed. The major genetic pathways that are
active in developing the diverse soils that form in New
Zealand are reviewed. Finally, the main soil and land evaluation tools that are used to develop and disseminate
information about the soils of New Zealand and their use and
management are briefly reviewed. A variety of approaches
has been developed to evaluate soils and their associated
landscapes of which ten are discussed here.
18.2 New Zealand Soils in a Global Context
18.2.1 Introduction
It is informative to compare New Zealand soils with those in
other countries to understand our ‘pedological place’ in the
world. The question of the distinctiveness of New Zealand
soils is important for the person who wishes to import or
export soil-based knowledge and for the application of
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
A. E. Hewitt et al., The Soils of Aotearoa New Zealand, World Soils Book Series,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64763-6_18
289