Soil Functions 2020

Areas that play a highly important role as habitats for rare and near-natural plant communities are restricted almost exclusively to the outskirts of Berlin. As well as the areas that are moderately important, they are almost exclusively located in forests. The majority of the areas, especially those in the inner city, play only a minor role in this regard. 01.12.1 Habitat Function of Soils for Rare and Near-Natural Plant CommunitiesMore information

Only few of Berlin’s soils receive a “high” rating for their yield function. These are primarily sites with a good water and nutrient supply. There is a high proportion of areas with a low yield function, however. This is caused by nutrient deficient soils, sandy soils with a predominantly poor water supply and anthropogenic aggradations in the city centre. 01.12.2 Yield Function of Soils for Cultivated PlantsMore information

Loamy soils have a high buffering and filtration function with low water permeability and a high effective cation exchange capacity. These requirements are met primarily by the soils on the Teltow and Barnim boulder marl plateaus. The sandy soils of the glacial valley only have a low ability to filter and buffer pollutants. 01.12.3 Buffering and Filtering Functions of SoilsMore information

The regulatory function of many near-natural soil associations with a groundwater exchange rate of less than a year is rated as high. This includes all groundwater-influenced soil associations and forests with high levels of evaporation. Soils with a low rating are concentrated in the inner city, industrial areas and track facilities. 01.12.4 Water Regulation Function of SoilsMore information

There are only few areas in the Berlin region that stand out in their archival function for natural history. They consist of near-natural soils exclusively, which are often located on the outskirts of the city. Soil associations that have been highly altered, often anthropogenically, or soils formed by aggradation play only a minor role in this regard. 01.12.5 Archival Function of Soils for Natural HistoryMore information

Areas with an overall high efficacy predominate on the plateaus in the north and south, the Spandauer Forst and the Gosener Wiesen. By contrast, highly populated areas that are far from being near-natural are characterised by a low to medium efficacy. 01.12.6 Capacity of Soils to Fulfil the Natural Soil Functions and the Archival FunctionMore information

The soil’s potential to evaporate water depends on land use, its soil physical properties, the water balance, and the proportion of impervious surfaces. This identified evaporation potential serves as a gauge for the potential cooling capacity of Berlin’s soils. 01.12.7.1 Soil Evaporation Potential Based on Soil PropertiesMore information

The soil cooling capacity refers to the soil’s ability to convert solar energy into latent heat through the evaporation of stored water within it. This transformation of solar energy into latent heat means it no longer contributes to heating the air. The more water stored in the soil and evaporated directly by plants and through the soil, the less the air temperature rises due to solar radiation. 01.12.7.2 Soil Cooling Capacity without the Impact of Impervious Soil CoverageMore information

The soil cooling capacity refers to the soil’s ability to convert solar energy into latent heat through the evaporation of stored water within it. This transformation of solar energy into latent heat means it no longer contributes to heating the air. The more water stored in the soil and evaporated directly by plants and through the soil, the less the air temperature rises due to solar radiation. When impervious coverage is taken into account, the soil cooling capacity drops significantly. 01.12.7.3 Soil Cooling Capacity with the Impact of Impervious Soil CoverageMore information