MAPPING AND ASSESSMENT OF SOIL PROPERTIES FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE WITH AN APPLICATION OF GIS IN DISTRICT CHINIOT, PUNJAB, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Maintaining healthy soil is essential for sustainable agriculture practices. A comprehensive study was conducted on 46 soil samples from the Chiniot district, analyzing various physical and chemical properties such as pH, Electrical Conductivity, Total Dissolved Solids, Sieve Analysis, Alkalinity, Total Hardness, Carbonates, Chloride, Calcium, and Magnesium. Geographic Information System (GIS) employing the Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) technique was utilized for mapping. The majority of the soil samples were identified as loamy sandy and sandy loamy. Elevated alkalinity was observed across the area, with TDS values ranging from 25 to 450 mg/L, and EC varying from 10 to 300µS. Regions such as Chenab Nagar, Hast Khiwa, and Kanvanwala exhibited higher levels of hardness, carbonates, chlorides, calcium, and magnesium. Hydro-chemical facies comparison using diamond and piper diagrams revealed that the predominant compounds were Magnesium bicarbonate types (58%), where alkalis exceeded alkaline earths (100%). The prevalent cation type was Magnesium (100%), and the anion distribution showed no dominant type (52%), with an equal distribution of sulfate and bicarbonate types (48%), and none of sulfate and chlorides. These findings provide valuable insights for agriculturists, aiding in the selection of crops suitable for specific soil types