Fairpoint soil and aerial view
Soil profile: The Fairpoint series consists of very deep, well drained soils. (Kentucky Soil Atlas; by Anastasios D. Karathanasis, University of Kentucky)
Landscape: Typical aerial view of mountain-top removal of coal and reclaimed landscape. These soils formed in materials derived from the surface mining of coal. Permeability is moderate or moderately slow. The regolith is a mixture of partially weathered fine-earth and rock fragments. Slopes range from 0 to 90 percent.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, nonacid, mesic Typic Udorthents
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 152 cm (60 inches)
Depth Class: Very deep
Rock Fragment Content: The A or Ap horizon ranges from 15 to 60 percent, by volume. The C horizon ranges from 35 to 60 percent, by volume, averaging 45 percent.
Rock Fragment Size: 2 mm to 25 cm, but can include stones and boulders
Rock Fragment Type: Nonacid siltstone, shale, sandstone, limestone and coal
Fine-Earth Fraction: Averages 18 to 35 percent clay in the control section
Soil Reaction: Moderately acid through neutral, except where limed
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major Uses: Wildlife habitat and recreational areas. The rough topography and coarse fragment content of unreclaimed areas make it impractical for agriculture and difficult for standard forest harvesting practices. Some reclaimed areas are used for hay or pasture, and increasingly, are also used for homesites. Reclaimed areas typically exhibit higher bulk densities, much lower saturated hydraulic conductivities and low organic matter in the surface horizon, making establishment of vegetation difficult.
Dominant Vegetation: Unreclaimed areas are naturally seeded deciduous forests with a few barren areas. Reclaimed areas are usually open grassland, including some legumes. A few reclaimed areas have been planted to trees, but mortality is high because of soil compaction.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Distribution: Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia
Extent: Large, over 500,00 acres identified. Fairpoint soils were previously mapped as a variety of strip mine spoil and udorthents units.
For additional information about Kentucky soils, visit:
uknowledge.uky.edu/pss_book/4/
For a detailed soil description, visit:
soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/F/FAIRPOINT.html
For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:
casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#fairpoint
Fairpoint soil and aerial view
Soil profile: The Fairpoint series consists of very deep, well drained soils. (Kentucky Soil Atlas; by Anastasios D. Karathanasis, University of Kentucky)
Landscape: Typical aerial view of mountain-top removal of coal and reclaimed landscape. These soils formed in materials derived from the surface mining of coal. Permeability is moderate or moderately slow. The regolith is a mixture of partially weathered fine-earth and rock fragments. Slopes range from 0 to 90 percent.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, active, nonacid, mesic Typic Udorthents
Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 152 cm (60 inches)
Depth Class: Very deep
Rock Fragment Content: The A or Ap horizon ranges from 15 to 60 percent, by volume. The C horizon ranges from 35 to 60 percent, by volume, averaging 45 percent.
Rock Fragment Size: 2 mm to 25 cm, but can include stones and boulders
Rock Fragment Type: Nonacid siltstone, shale, sandstone, limestone and coal
Fine-Earth Fraction: Averages 18 to 35 percent clay in the control section
Soil Reaction: Moderately acid through neutral, except where limed
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major Uses: Wildlife habitat and recreational areas. The rough topography and coarse fragment content of unreclaimed areas make it impractical for agriculture and difficult for standard forest harvesting practices. Some reclaimed areas are used for hay or pasture, and increasingly, are also used for homesites. Reclaimed areas typically exhibit higher bulk densities, much lower saturated hydraulic conductivities and low organic matter in the surface horizon, making establishment of vegetation difficult.
Dominant Vegetation: Unreclaimed areas are naturally seeded deciduous forests with a few barren areas. Reclaimed areas are usually open grassland, including some legumes. A few reclaimed areas have been planted to trees, but mortality is high because of soil compaction.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Distribution: Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia
Extent: Large, over 500,00 acres identified. Fairpoint soils were previously mapped as a variety of strip mine spoil and udorthents units.
For additional information about Kentucky soils, visit:
uknowledge.uky.edu/pss_book/4/
For a detailed soil description, visit:
soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/F/FAIRPOINT.html
For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:
casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#fairpoint