Geological map services as a tool for natural risk management in Finland: Geochemical baselines and acid sulfate soils

Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) provides data on assessing risks related to soil geochemical baselines and acid sulfate soils. The results are published as map services and they can be used for example to aid land use planning, environmental impact assessments, evaluation of soil contamination and soil remediation actions. Acid sulfate soil data can also be utilized in water protection planning.

Geochemical baseline samples are gathered from the most common minerogenic soil parent materials in urban areas, industrial environments and in the surroundings of mine sites. In the map service data 17 elements are presented in total and it is possible to calculate the regional soil baseline values from a desired area.

The acid sulfate soil map service contains survey data on the properties of acid sulfate soils in the coastal regions of Finland. It is possible to study the general maps of the probable presence of acid sulfate soils and survey-point specific information based on drilling and analysis results.

Both map services mentioned above are free to view at the GTK web pages.