Soil and Terrain Databases (SOTER)

SOTER is a standard for developing soil and terrain databases, which consist of  a map (in GIS polygon format) that delineates the SOTER map units and a set of tables in a relational database (in MS Access or PostGreSQL format) with terrain and soil data. The information in the table can be linked to the units of the map. Details on methodology are provided in the SOTER Procedures Manual.

SOTER products have been developed for some 30 countries, by various lead organizations, and at various scales. SOTER databases have been produced at regional level (, Central and Eastern Europe, Central Africa, Southern Africa, South America and the Caribbean), at country level (Argentina, China, Cuba, Kenya, Malawi, Nepal, Senegal and Gambia, Tunisia), and at district level (Upper Tana Basin, Kenya).

SOTER datasets can be accessed through the ISRIC Soil Data Hub.