Keywords

(a) The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants. (b) The unconsolidated mineral or organic matter on the surface of the earth that has been subjected to and shows effect of genetic and environmental factors of: climate (including water and temperature effects), and macro- and microorganisms, conditioned by relief, acting on parent material over a period of time.  A product-soil differs from the material from which it is derived in many physical, chemical, biological and morphological properties and characteristics.

Geological keywords, such as “granite”, “lake”.  The definitions are generally taken from the AGI Glossary of Geology.  Keywords with a geographic context (e.g. Cape Smith Fold Belt, Selwyn Basin, Grenville Province) are assigned to a separate category.