dataset · United Kingdom
Measured Urban Soil Chemistry
The BGS digital Measured Urban Soil Chemistry data comprises the locations and concentrations (mg kg-1) of Arsenic (As), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Nickel (Ni) and Lead (Pb) in urban topsoil samples. The data is derived from the national, high resolution urban soil geochemical data from the BGS Geochemical Baseline Survey of the Environment (G-BASE) project. The information is relevant for the first stage of any assessment of risks to human health required by regulatory authorities in relation
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Licence: ["The copyright of materials derived from the British Geological Survey's work is vested in the Natural Environment Research Council [NERC]. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in an
Evidence quality: 37.8
Listed in data.gov.uk public catalogue API on 2026-10-16; relevance/value screened (haiku).
Metadata checked: 2026-10-14T13:20:00.000Z
What's in it
- Data offered docs-verified
- urban topsoil arsenic (As) concentration, mg/kg · urban topsoil cadmium (Cd) concentration, mg/kg · urban topsoil chromium (Cr) concentration, mg/kg · urban topsoil nickel (Ni) concentration, mg/kg · urban topsoil lead (Pb) concentration, mg/kg · sample locations (point source)
- Coverage docs-verified
- Bounding box 49.77° to 60.86° N, 8.65° W to 1.78° E (UK, per entry metadata) · 2012 (dataset reference date, creation); sampling period not stated
- Resolution docs-verified
- Point-source sample locations; spatial resolution otherwise not stated
- Update frequency docs-verified
- As needed (metadata frequency 'asNeeded'); page last updated 2 October 2026
- Access docs-verified
- No payment or API key stated; obtained via data.gov.uk data links. Licence unclear: the page footer says OGL v3.0 except where otherwise stated, but the dataset's access constraints restrict reproduction without NERC/BGS permission. Confirm before reuse.
Useful for
- Use cases llm-inferred
- Phase 1 contaminated-land screening of urban topsoil PHEs (As, Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb) for a residential or mixed-use development site · Identifying urban areas where a local planning authority may require developers to carry out a risk assessment · Comparing topsoil metal concentrations with historic land use and geology to judge geogenic versus anthropogenic sources · Ecological risk screening baseline for urban topsoil metals
- Audience llm-inferred
- environmental consultants · contaminated land specialists · geotechnical engineers · planners and local planning authority officers · ecologists
Limitations
- Constraints docs-verified
- Screening only: exceedances of soil guideline values do not necessarily imply a significant health risk · Covers only five elements (As, Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb), not other PHEs · Point-source data is an interpretation of BGS records at the time of creation (2012), not a full risk assessment · Sampling period and analytical methods are not stated in the docs · Reproduction requires NERC/BGS permission; BGS gives no warranty of accuracy or suitability · Requires a separate SGV or land-use comparison; the dataset does not contain one
Evidence
- https://www.bgs.ac.uk/
- https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/f9e2cbb1-8aba-4797-9888-368d102a7ddc/measured-urban-soil-chemistry
Check upstream coverage, uncertainty and licence before use. Station observations are not forecasts or design levels.