Soils – Grid – Productivity Index

This data layer is a composite raster of the Soil Productivity Index from the Natural Resources Conservation Service's Gridded Soil Survey Geographic Database (gSSURGO) and U.S. Digital General Soil Map (STATSGO2). It was compiled by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. SSURGO contains information on soils collected by the National Cooperative Soil Survey over the course of a century. STATSGO2 is a generalized classification of soils where detailed soil surveys are not available. The Soil Productivity Index was developed by Schaetzl et al. with support from the U.S. Forest Service. It is a measure of the productivity of soil and is based on taxonomic features and properties of soil families. Values range from 0 to 19, with 0 being the least productive and 19 being the most productive. The productivity of soils dictates the types and amount of vegetation that can grow and the activities that can take place.