Guide to 'Soil quality' section

Increased levels of metals, PAHs, pesticides, nitrate and phosphate in the soil involve risks for public health, plants and animals. This means that soil pollution reduces the range of possible uses and has implications for the extraction of drinking water and biodiversity. As a result, the development of housing, industrial estates, and agriculture and horticulture stagnates.

Introduction to soil quality

• Soil quality and soil pollution: policy
• Soil contamination and soil cleanup: terms and definitions
• Soil quality: the current picture and the threats
• Local soil pollution: the risks

Index Data about soil quality

• PAH levels in the soil in the Netherlands
• Pesticides in the soil in the Netherlands
• Accumulation of heavy metals in the soil in the Netherlands
• Heavy metals in agricultural land
• Phosphate saturation of agricultural soils in the Netherlands, 1986-1999
• Number of soil pollution sites in the Netherlands, 1982-2002
• Radium levels in dredging sludge from the Rhine estuary area, 1994-2002

Relevant sections and indicators in the Environmental Data Compendium

• Completed soil investigation and soil cleanup in the Netherlands, 1980-2002
• Soil cleanup progress in the Netherlands, 2000-2002
• Guide to emissions to air, water and soil
• Guide to the 'Environmental pressure by theme' section . Emissions of phosphate (Index Eutrophication theme), heavy metals, PAHs and pesticides (Index Toxic and hazardous substances theme) in particular affect the quality of the soil.
• Guide to 'Impact of environmental pressure on nature' section