NRCS Technical Soil Services - Helping Customers Make Better Use of Soils Information.

Technical Soil Services (TSS) is the term used by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to encompass the broad range of activities conducted by agency personnel to support the use of soils information by a wide range of internal and external customers. Although TSS has always been a component of the overall soil survey and soil science programs within the agency, it has taken on greater importance and emphasis in recent years as initial soil survey inventory activities are completed for the vast majority of the United States. This presentation will summarize information on the number and scope of reported TSS activities over the past 3 fiscal years (FY2012, FY2013 and FY2014) conducted by the nearly 500 working soil scientists employed by USDA-NRCS nationwide. It will highlight both areas of current activity and potential future emphasis. In addition, the presentation will briefly summarize the breadth of soil information products available to the general public, the most widely requested information products and the delivery mechanisms available (e.g. Web Soil Survey, Data Gateway, Soil Data Access website). The presentation will conclude with a brief discussion of proposed future soils information products and delivery systems. NRCS soil scientists continue to be committed to providing information on properties, use and management of the soils of the United States to internal and external customers. Building on existing strengths and exploring and employing the best of new techniques and technologies, will allow the agency to continue to efficiently and effectively provide relevant and useful information now and in the future.