Soil in the Environment
Crucible of Terrestrial Life

A textbook on soils as the breath of life to the terrestrial environment

Daniel Hillel (Author)

9780123485366, Elsevier Science

Hardback, published 20 December 2007

320 pages, Illustrated
26 x 18.3 x 2.4 cm, 0.88 kg

"What a great textbook for students of the environmental sciences and a reference book for scientists seeking cutting-edge practical applications of theories. The author produced a very well written and organized book with historical and modern perspectives, matched with excellent graphics. WOW!" --Dr. Leticia S. Sonon, Soil, Plant, and Water Laboratory, University of Georgia, Athens, USA

"As current university soil courses more and more blend agriculture and environmental issues this text will become a standard. The topics provide insightful coverage of soil in sustaining two basic human needs, a quality food supply and a livable environment, both needs on which future global dependency will rise, not diminish. This text is the right resource for the right time, it's perfect for the new type of introductory soil course appearing on college campuses." --Steve Thien, Kansas State University, USA

"Soil in the Environment is an excellent introductory text addressing the importance of soils in ecosystems and the environment. It would be an outstanding choice as the text for a university core science course introducing students to soil science. Core science courses are required for all non-science students at almost all major universities and colleges as part of a well-rounded university education.

The textbook could also serve as a very good textbook for an introductory soil science course for ecologists, landscape architects, and other students who need a good exposure to the fundamentals of soil science for their future careers, but who might be overwhelmed by a comprehensive soil science text. Students taking soils related courses at community colleges could also find this textbook potentially useful.

The textbook is written in Dr. Hillel's easy to understand style and he has made liberal use of high quality figures and tables. The ample use of color figures and diagrams is partcularly striking. The author has also included blue boxed text areas throughout the book that illustrate real world practical examples of the material being discussed in that chapter. The examples included in these blue boxed areas are critically important in making the subject being discussed pertinent to students and help retain their interest when reading. There is also a well conceived and thoughtful glossary included at the end of the textbook." --Dr. Robert L. Hill, Professor of Soil Physics, Soil & Water Management, Dep. of Environmental Science & Technology, University of Maryland College Park, USA

"I find this book full of fascination and passion for soil knowledge. Dr. Hillel vividly depicts the importance of soil and why we should care about it while he walks us through both a general and broad understanding of soil science. I consider it the perfect tool for captivating new generations of soil scientists whom, for sure, will readily become Homo sapiens curans after this reading. This book could be used as a core text in introductory courses for non soil science students and as an additional reading for soil science students." --Nadia Martínez-Villegas, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, USA

"All of his writings are in a crisp, straight-forward language, but in his current text, I find Dr. Hillel to be more philosophical in his approach to soil physics education. In the classroom environment and his earlier texts, he was more quantitative than philosophical; just the opposite in this one, without losing the tenor required of an introductory text in soil physics. Other than his “Rivers of Eden? book, this is the most readable text yet published on the subject. The beginning student is guided through the text with witty and interesting insights into history. He doesn’t pass up the opportunity to give example problems for the student to work through, but the book is not overloaded with calculations, something that most beginning students in soil science might find comforting. The professor who uses this text for a basic class in soil physics will find it completely fulfilling in that subject matter, and it will also provide the students with a rich background in ecological interactions between soil, crop, population growth, and the environment.

New in this publication by Dr. Hillel, is the inclusion of appendices where he talks about the role soil plays in the mitigation of global warming (Appendix A), and the role soil plays in the global food supply (Appendix B). Both are chuck-full of useful information that is thought-provoking for tomorrow’s leaders in soil and other sciences.

This is definitely a text for use in college soil physics classes, an excellent one for reference for horticulturists like myself, and, I would submit, any communications medium that purports to inform the public on environmental and agricultural issues with research-based information." --Dr. Ronald Smith, North Dakota State University, Department of Plant Sciences, Fargo, USA

"This book provides a compact review of the material necessary for anyone interested in understanding the interaction of soils with the other components of our environment. As an excellent teaching tool, the book is organized in a logical manner beginning with the basic soil concepts, followed by topics highlighting the role of soil in the plant-water–air ecosystems, and concluding with an overview of the impact of population growth on the world’s agricultural soils. Students and instructors will find the glossary presented at the end of the book very useful as both a study guide and a quick reference for technical terms." --Dave Goorahoo, California State University, Fresno, USA

"Soil in the Environment links soil science, environmental studies, civil engineering, geology, and life science...valuable reference for undergraduate students, [including] important issues such as global warming and climatic change, soil energy balance, and food production demand. I plan to use it with other references for teaching soil science course (for sophomore students) in the college of agriculture sciences. " --Ahmed Al-wadaey

Soil in the Environment is key for every course in soil science, earth science, and environmental disciplines. This textbook engages students to critically look at soil as the central link in the function and creation of the terrestrial environment.

1. Soil as a Living Body: Its Dynamic Role in the Environment
2. Soil Formation
Weathering, Soil-Forming Factors, Soil Profile, Pedogenesis
3. Soil Classification
Attributes and Criteria, Orders and Global Distribution
4. Soil Physical Attributes
Texture, Specific Surface, Clay, Ion Exchange, Soil Structure, Soil Air
5. Soil-Water Statics
Water Content, Energy Potential, Matric and Osmotic Effects
6. Soil-Water Dynamics
Water Flow in Saturated and Unsaturated Soils, Solute Transport
7. Soil-Water Cycle
Infiltration, Runoff, Redistribution, Drainage, Evapotranspiration, SPAC
8. Soil-Water and Soil-Energy Balances in the Field
Water and Energy Budgets, Atmospheric Greenhouse Effect
9. Soil Chemical Attributes and Processes
Organic Matter, Acidity, Oxidation-Reduction, Salinity, Sodicity
10. Soil Fertility and Plant Nutrition
Essential Macro and Micro Nutrients, Fertilizers, Soil Amendments
11. Soil Biodiversity
Forms and Functions of the Soil Community, Sustaining Biodiversity
12. Soil and Water Management
Origin of Agriculture, Tillage, Irrigation, Water-Use Efficiency
13. Soil Erosion and Conservation
Water Erosion, Wind Erosion, Desertification, Soil Conservation
14. Soil Pollution and Remediation
Waste Disposal on Land, Inorganic and Organic Pollutants, Soil Remediation
15. Current Perspectives, Future Prospects
The Population-Food Dilemma, Water Resources, Climate Change

Subject Areas: The environment [RN], Soil science, sedimentology [RBGB], Earth sciences [RB]