Methodological problems with the classification and measurement of soils containing carbonates

Abstract

The term “carbonate soils,” although relatively commonly used by soil scientists around the world, does not have a standardized qualitative and quantitative definition. It is often used interchangeably with “calcareous soils,” although it seems to cover not only limestone soils, but all soils containing carbonates, the origin of which may vary. Some authors, however, frequently use the term “calcium carbonate-rich soils” (Kowalska et al., 2017, 2019) and this refers to soils developed on parent material with a calcium carbonate content of 5% to 50% (Czermiński, 1955; Kowalska et al., 2019). Soil containing carbonates are found all over the world (Zamanian et al., 2016a). The carbonate content in solum may vary between 1% and more than 90% (Razzaghi et al., 2021). Their form may also vary. In the most basic sense, carbonates may be grouped as either primary (lithogenic) or secondary (pedogenic). Lithogenic carbonates, also called geogenic carbonates, are derived from the parent material of the soil – weathered carbonate rock such as limestone, marl, gaize, dolomite, etc. (Guo et al., * Methodological problems with the classifi cation and measurement of soils containing carbonates