Soil Survey of Lincoln County, West Virginia - Soil Data Mart - US ...

Soil Survey of Lincoln County, West Virginia
include tracts of land that have been designated for agriculture by State law. For the
most part, these soils must meet the same criteria as prime farmland with the
exception of slope. In Lincoln County, these soils have slopes that range mainly from
8 to 15 percent. More detailed information about the criteria for farmland of statewide
importance is available at the local office of the Natural Resources Conservation
Service.
About 17,322 acres, or 6 percent of the total acreage in the county, meets the soil
requirements for farmland of statewide importance. Scattered areas of this land are
throughout the county, but most are in the northern half. Agricultural land use in these
areas is usually hay, pasture, or some isolated fields of corn or tobacco.
In some areas that are not identified as having national or statewide importance,
land is considered to be farmland of local importance for the production of food, feed,
fiber, forage, and oilseed crops. This farmland is identified by the appropriate local
agencies. Farmland of local importance may include tracts of land that have been
designated for agriculture by local ordinance. About 3,252 acres, or 1.2 percent of the
total acreage in the county, meets the soil requirements for farmland of local
importance.
The map units in the survey area that are considered prime farmland or farmland
of statewide or local importance are listed in table 7. This list does not constitute a
recommendation for a particular land use. On some soils included in the list,
measures that overcome a hazard or limitation, such as flooding, wetness, and
droughtiness, are needed. Onsite evaluation is needed to determine whether or not
the hazard or limitation has been overcome by corrective measures. The extent of
each listed map unit is shown in table 4. The location is shown on the detailed soil
maps. The soil qualities that affect use and management are described under the
heading “Detailed Soil Map Units.”
Agricultural Waste Management
Soil properties are important considerations in areas where soils are used as sites
for the treatment and disposal of organic waste and wastewater. Selection of soils
with properties that favor waste management can help to prevent environmental
damage.
Tables 8a, 8b, and 8c show the degree and kind of soil limitations affecting the
treatment of agricultural waste, including municipal and food-processing wastewater
and effluent from lagoons or storage ponds. Municipal wastewater is the waste
stream from a municipality. It contains domestic waste and may contain industrial
waste. It may have received primary or secondary treatment. It is rarely untreated
sewage. Food-processing wastewater results from the preparation of fruits,
vegetables, milk, cheese, and meats for public consumption. In places it is high in
content of sodium and chloride. In the context of these tables, the effluent in lagoons
and storage ponds is from facilities used to treat or store food-processing wastewater
or domestic or animal waste. Domestic and food-processing wastewater is very dilute,
and the effluent from the facilities that treat or store it commonly is very low in content
of carbonaceous and nitrogenous material; the content of nitrogen commonly ranges
from 10 to 30 milligrams per liter. The wastewater from animal waste treatment
lagoons or storage ponds, however, has much higher concentrations of these
materials, mainly because the manure has not been diluted as much as the domestic
waste. The content of nitrogen in this wastewater generally ranges from 50 to
2,000 milligrams per liter. When wastewater is applied, checks should be made to
ensure that nitrogen, heavy metals, and salts are not added in excessive amounts.
The ratings in the tables are for waste management systems that not only dispose
of and treat organic waste or wastewater but also are beneficial to crops (application
of manure and food-processing waste, application of sewage sludge, and disposal of
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