Soil Depth Map of Bhutan

ISO 19115-3 Metadata

Metadata Information

Metadata identifier:
Identifier code: 487d91f9b93d40b183464a691f8cc548
Default locale:
Language code: eng
Country code: US
Character encoding: utf8
Metadata contact:
Role: author
Responsible party:
Organization:
Name: National Soil Services Centre
Indvidual:
Individual:
Name: Tsheten Dorji
Position name: Program Head
Metadata contact:
Role: publisher
Responsible party:
Organization:
Name: National Soil Services Centre
Indvidual:
Individual:
Name: Sangita Pradhan
Position name: Sr. Technician Supervisor
Metadata date information:
Date type: revision
Date: 2026-06-22T00:00:00
Metadata standard:
Title: ISO 19115-3 Geographic Information - Metadata - Part 1: Fundamentals
Edition: 2014
Metadata scope:
Resource scope: dataset
Scope name: dataset
Metadata maintenance:
Update frequency: asNeeded
Metadata constraints:
General Constraints:
Limitations of use: Do not alter or reproduce the map and its related information without the prior consent of National Soil Services Centre, Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture & Livestock of the Royal Government of Bhutan.

Data Identification Information

Resource citation:
Title: Soil Depth Map of Bhutan
Citation date:
Date type: publication
Date: 2026-06-22T00:00:00
Citation date:
Date type: creation
Date: 2026-06-08T00:00:00
Cited responsible party:
Role: pointOfContact
Responsible party:
Organization:
Name: National Soil Services Centre
Indvidual:
Individual:
Name: Tashi Wangdi
Position name: Program Director
Presentation format: mapDigital
Online resource:
Online location: https://nsdi.systems.gov.bt/server/rest/services/Hosted/Soil_Depth_Map_of_Bhutan/FeatureServer
Abstract: This dataset provides spatial information on soil depth of Bhutan. The map was generated through reconnaissance soil survey of agricultural land of Bhutan. The resolution of this map is at 30 meters, however, please use it with caution as the uncertainty level is high in some places, especially in forested area due to collecting samples only from agricultural land and also, the ground truthing is currently in progress.
Purpose: This dataset provides spatial information on soil depth of Bhutan generated through reconnaissance soil survey using Random forest modelling with 10-fold cross validation. Soil depth in Bhutan varies across the country due to differences in topography, geology, climate, and land use. Deep soils are mainly found in valleys and gentle slopes, while shallow soils are common in steep mountainous areas. The resolution of this map is at 30 meters, however, please use it with caution as the uncertainty level is high in some places, especially in forested area due to collecting samples only from agricultural land.
Credits: This dataset is produced with funding support from the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) and Asian Food & Agriculture Cooperation Initiative (AFACI) of Rural Development Administration of the Republic of Korea and with technical support from Global Soil Partnership (GSP) of Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN).
Point of contact:
Role: resourceProvider
Responsible party:
Organization:
Name: National Soil Services Centre
Indvidual:
Individual:
Name: Tashi Wangdi
Position name: Program Director
Spatial representation type: vector
Spatial resolution:
Spatial resolution:
Distance:
Distance: 30
Units of measure: m
Themes or categories of the resource: farming, geoscientificInformation
Resource extent:
Geographic element:
Bounding rectangle:
Extent contains the resource: true
West longitude: 88.733575
East longitude: 92.146818
North latitude: 28.247766
South latitude: 26.684996
Resource maintenance:
Update frequency: asNeeded
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords: Downloadable Data

Thesaurus:
Citation reference: 723f6998-058e-11dc-8314-0800200c9a66
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords: Soil, Farming, Agriculture, common

Descriptive keywords:
Keywords: Soil, Farming, Agriculture, common

Descriptive keywords:
Keywords: Soil, Farming, Agriculture, common

Descriptive keywords:
Keywords: Soil, Farming, Agriculture, common

Default locale:
Language code: eng
Country code: US
Character encoding: utf8
Environment description: Version 6.2 (Build 9200) ; Esri ArcGIS 10.3.0.4322

Spatial Representation Information

Vector Data

Level of topology for this dataset: geometryOnly
Geometric objects:
Object type: composite
Object count: 4414467

Reference System Information

Reference system identifier:
Identifier code: 5266
Codespace: EPSG
Version: 8.2.6

Resource Lineage

Lineage statement: Random Forest modeling with 10-fold cross validation.
Lineage scope:
Scope level: dataset

Distribution Information

Distribution format:
Format specification citation:
Title: Soil Depth Map of Bhutan
Edition: Version 1.0
Digital transfer options:
Units of distribution: KB
Transfer size: 1126869
Online location:
Online location: https://nsdi.systems.gov.bt/server/rest/services/Hosted/Soil_Depth_Map_of_Bhutan/FeatureServer