ИСТИНА

Soil mapping and classification are closely interrelated. Classification schemes serve as a basis for the legends of maps; at the same time they draw on and are corrected in accordance with the results of mapping. However, not all maps help to elaborate classifications. For instance, only “system” soil maps, created using the systems approach, suit for verification of hierarchical soil classifications. Soils are unique landscape components* because only they are formed through the interaction of all the other components. That is why soil maps must be unique also and display the relationships of soils with all the other components. The concept, methodology and GIS technologies of creation of multi-scaled system maps are worked out. All system maps (landscape, and of soil and the other component’s properties) are different versions of one integrated polygon layer, which is created manually on the basis of expert analysis of maximum possible quantity of cartographic, and text sources and following improvement according to remotely sensed data. Legends of the system maps are based on one hierarchical landscape classification. Soil classification is developed as derived from the landscape classification. In order to provide connection with the integrated layer and simplify extracting information, the landscape classification is elaborated as interactive and placed in Internet. At present system maps of Saratovskaya oblast occupying 100200 km2 are created. *Landscapes are natural geographical systems - elementary structural units of the Earth’s landscape envelope, each component of which (rocks, air, natural water, vegetation, animals, and soils) possesses relatively homogeneous genetic properties.