Provides a wide range of scientific knowledge on all aspects of soil science, as well as the links of soils and soil science to environmental management, food production, biodiversity, climate change, and many other areas of significant concern.

The Encyclopedia of Soil Science provides a comprehensive, alphabetical treatment of basic soil science in a single volume. It constitutes a wide ranging and authorative collection of some 160 academic articles covering the salient aspects of soil physics, chemistry, biology, fertility, technology, genesis, morphology, classification and geomorphology. With increased usage of soil for world food production, building materials, and waste repositories, demand has grown for a better global understanding of soil and its processes. longer articles by leading authorities from around the world are supplemented by some 430 definitions of common terms in soil sciences.

Annotation. More than ever before, a compelling need exists for an encyclopedic resource about soil - the rich mix of mineral particles, organic matter, gases, and soluble compounds that foster both plant and animal growth. Civilization depends more on the soil as human populations continue to grow and increasing demands are placed upon available resources. The Encyclopedia of Soils in the Environment is a comprehensive and integrated consideration of a topic of vital importance to human societies in the past, present, and future. This important work encompasses the present knowledge of the world's variegated soils, their origins, properties, classification, and roles in the biosphere. A team of outstanding, international contributors has written over 250 entries that cover a broad range of issues facing today's soil scientists, ecologists, and environmental scientists. This four-volume set features thorough articles that survey specific aspects of soil biology, ecology, chemistry and physics. Rounding out the encyclopedia's excellent coverage, contributions cover cross-disciplinary subjects, such as the history of soil utilization for agricultural and engineering purposes and soils in relation to the remediation of pollution and the mitigation of global climate change. This comprehensive, yet accessible source is a valuable addition to the library of scientists, researchers, students, and policy makers involved in soil science, ecology, and environmental science. Also available online via ScienceDirect - featuring extensive browsing, searching, and internal cross-referencing between articles in the work, plus dynamic linking to journal articles and abstract databases, making navigation flexible and easy. For more information, pricing options and availability visit www.info.sciencedirect.com. * A distinguished international group of editors and contributors * Well-organized encyclopedic format providing concise, readable entries, easy searches, and thorough cross-references * Abundant visual resources - photographs, figures, tables, and graphs - in every entry * Complete up-to-date coverage of many important topics - essential information for scientists, students and professionals alike.

New and Improved Global Edition: Three-Volume Set A ready reference addressing a multitude of soil and soil management concerns, the highly anticipated and widely expanded third edition of Encyclopedia of Soil Science now spans three volumes and covers ground on a global scale. A definitive guide designed for both coursework and self-study, this latest version describes every branch of soil science and delves into trans-disciplinary issues that focus on inter-connectivity or the nexus approach. For Soil Scientists, Crop Scientists, Plant Scientists and More A host of contributors from around the world weigh in on underlying themes relevant to natural and agricultural ecosystems. Factoring in a rapidly changing climate and a vastly growing population, they sound off on topics that include soil degradation, climate change, soil carbon sequestration, food and nutritional security, hidden hunger, water quality, non-point source pollution, micronutrients, and elemental transformations. New in the Third Edition: Contains over 600 entries Offers global geographical and thematic coverage Entries peer reviewed by subject experts Addresses current issues of global significance Encyclopedia of Soil Science, Third Edition: Three Volume Set expertly explains the science of soil and describes the material in terms that are easily accessible to researchers, students, academicians, policy makers, and laymen alike. Also Available Online This Taylor & Francis encyclopedia is also available through online subscription, offering a variety of extra benefits for researchers, students, and librarians, including: Citation tracking and alerts Active reference linking Saved searches and marked lists HTML and PDF format options Contact Taylor and Francis for more information or to inquire about subscription options and print/online combination packages. US: (Tel) 1.888.318.2367; (E-mail) [email protected] International: (Tel) +44 (0) 20 7017 6062; (E-mail) [email protected]

This Encyclopedia of Agrophysics will provide up-to-date information on the physical properties and processes affecting the quality of the environment and plant production. It will be a "first-up" volume which will nicely complement the recently published Encyclopedia of Soil Science, (November 2007) which was published in the same series. In a single authoritative volume a collection of about 250 informative articles and ca 400 glossary terms covering all aspects of agrophysics will be presented. The authors will be renowned specialists in various aspects in agrophysics from a wide variety of countries. Agrophysics is important both for research and practical use not only in agriculture, but also in areas like environmental science, land reclamation, food processing etc. Agrophysics is a relatively new interdisciplinary field closely related to Agrochemistry, Agrobiology, Agroclimatology and Agroecology. Nowadays it has been fully accepted as an agricultural and environmental discipline. As such this Encyclopedia volume will be an indispensable working tool for scientists and practitioners from different disciplines, like agriculture, soil science, geosciences, environmental science, geography, and engineering.

Soils represent the result of a complex set of interacting processes and are an integral component of the environment. Yet soils remain the most undervalued and misused of the Earth's resources. This work examines the fundamental importance of soils. Combining practical analysis and interpretation with a theoretical approach, the authors discuss the properties of soils, debate the environmental factors that influence their development, and address their resulting spatial characteristics on a global scale. Examining the impact of environmental controls on soil formation this book also analyzes the role of soils as components of natural environmental systems, and soil-human interactions. A glossary of terms aids the less scientific reader. Adopting macro and micro-scale, pure and applied, spatial and temporal, and natural and human related approaches, this book offers an understanding of soils within an environmental context. As environmental problems, such as pollution, acidification, erosion and climatic change become matters of greater concern, this work offers an understanding for readers across a spectrum of environmentally-related subjects.

A strongly interdisciplinary and wide-ranging survey of the environment of life on Earth: the most authoritative and comprehensive source on environmental science to be collected together in a single volume. Unique in presenting both a basic overview and detailed information on environmental topics. Entries are arranged in an encyclopedic A-Z format and contain extensive cross-references to related entries, as well as references to primary and secondary literature. Over 370 separate entries prepared by 228 leading experts from 25 countries. Incorporates 25 substantial in-depth treatments of key areas and also includes biographies of leading scientists and environmentalists. Contains a comprehensive subject index and a citation index of all referenced authors. The Encyclopedia of Environmental Science is a multidisciplinary reference work, which crosses many fields of interest and includes a wide variety of scholarly and authoritative articles on mankind's environment. It provides information on the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and geosphere and is careful to focus on the connections between these realms and the Earth as a whole. Taken as a whole, the Encyclopedia surveys basic environmental science and applied areas of study, and is drawn from the physical sciences, life sciences and social sciences. The 228 authors from 25 different countries, many of whom are the leading authorities in their field, include biologists, ecologists, geographers, geologists, political scientists, soil scientists, hydrologists, climatologists, and representatives of many other disciplines and academic specialties. The work, which is amply referenced and cross-referenced, consists of substantial essays on major topics, medium-sized entries and short definitional entries. The shorter entries include useful biographies of leading scientists and environmentalists. The Encyclopedia will be invaluable to all readers interested in the environment of life on Earth, its past, present and future, and its physical and social dimensions. The text provides a source of well-classified basic information as well as covering the leading theories and important debates in the environmental sciences. In addition, the book also includes assessments of the future prospects for the Earth's environment in the face of pollution, population increases and the accelerating transformation of land, air, water and vegetational systems. The Encyclopedia is unique in presenting both a basic overview and detailed information on environmental topics and is suitable for the general scientific reader and the specialized environmental scientist in academic institutions, research laboratories or private practice.