Overview
ISO 28258:2013/Amd 1:2019 is an amendment to ISO 28258 (Soil quality - Digital exchange of soil-related data). It updates the SoilML-based information model, XML/XSD examples and terminology to improve the digital exchange and interoperability of soil-related data. The amendment clarifies feature types (e.g., SoilProfile, ProfileElement, SoilObservation, SoilSpecimen), enforces unit-of-measure handling for depths, and aligns the standard with other geospatial standards in the ISO 19100 family.
Key technical topics and requirements
- Information model alignment: The exchange model is based on ISO 19156 (Observations and Measurements) adapted for soil data. OM_Process is restricted to a PreparationProcess subtype for specimen handling.
- Metadata and data quality: (Meta-)data about the quality of soil information can be included according to ISO 19157.
- Feature and observation constraints: Observations’ featureOfInterest are restricted to Site, Plot, SoilProfile, ProfileElement (Layer/Horizon) and SoilSpecimen, including subtypes. This ensures consistent semantics for soil observations.
- Soil profile modelling: The amendment clarifies that a SoilProfile is an ordered set of horizons and/or layers (ProfileElement) and updates labels and figures to reflect soil science terminology.
- XML / SoilML implementation guidance: The document expects data providers to extend SoilML UML classes and XSD to fit their data models. Example XSD fragments demonstrate namespaces (GML, OM, sampling, samplingSpatial, samplingSpecimen) and schema imports.
- Units and depth encoding: Depth elements must use a unit-of-measure (uom) attribute (example: 56.2), supporting consistent numeric encoding.
- Soil mapping support: SoilMappingUnit geometry is introduced (attribute GM_Object, multiplicity 0..*) and SoilMap extent is clarified per ISO 19107 envelope semantics.
- Validation tools: Terminology updated to “Validation software (check tools)” for compliance checking.
Practical applications
- Exchange of laboratory analyses, field observations and soil mapping between research institutes, labs, environmental agencies and GIS platforms.
- Integration of soil datasets into national soil inventories, environmental monitoring systems, precision agriculture workflows and decision-support tools.
- Development of interoperable data services, XML schemas and SoilML-compliant applications that require consistent semantics for soils, depths, horizons and specimens.
Who should use this standard
- Soil scientists and field teams collecting profile and specimen data
- GIS specialists and data managers integrating soil layers and maps
- Laboratory and testing labs exchanging analysis requests/results
- Software developers implementing SoilML, GML/OM-based schemas or data portals
- National agencies and research consortia standardizing soil data exchange
Related standards
- ISO 19156 (Observations and Measurements) - model basis
- ISO 19157 (Data quality) - metadata about data quality
- ISO 19107 / ISO 19100 family - geographic/spatial information standards
- GML / XML schema conventions used in SoilML/GML exchanges
Keywords: ISO 28258, soil quality, digital exchange, soil-related data, SoilML, ISO 19156, ISO 19157, GML, XML schema, soil mapping, soil profile, soil observation.
