Anthropogenic Substrates in relation to their identification and classification – a review

Abstract

The paper provides an overview of the of anthropogenic substrates issue, which is an essential part of the classification and mapping of anthropogenic soils. These are related to anthropogenic processes, the variability of which is quite large. It reflects number of classification systems of anthropogenic soils, which tend to be quite different in various countries. There is a discussion of the terminology of “anthropedosphere” as an exceptional sphere of anthropogenic soils and substrates investigation, and differentiation of anthropogenic and urban soil terminology is mentioned. The soil-forming substrate is a significant part of the soil mass especially for technogenic soils. Correlation relationships between the individual systems was not yet resolved. Ten soil classification systems over the world were overviewed in relation to applied principles and criteria of anthropogenic substrates. Recognition confirms a lack of anthropogenic substrates system in most soil classification systems and their remarkable diverse used principles. The connecting element is the reference classification of WRB soils with related anthropogenic materials: artefacts, technic hard material and anthropic qualifiers. Comparing systems; several attributes were similar like presence of artifacts or human transported and altered material or human-induced properties like qualifiers Ekranic, Urbic, Spolic or Garbic. As the most elaborate systems can be considered the German Soil Classification, USDA Soil Taxonomy, and Morphogenetic Soil Classification system (MSCS). The main aim of the paper is to evaluate the system of anthropogenic substrates in the MSCS (2014) in the light of latest information in the world and to provide a new proposal for the solution of anthropogenic (also by human transported) substrates (materials) for its revised version.

Keywords: anthropogenic substrate, artefacts, soil classification system