Estimated Soil Heavy Metal Concentrations Across Scotland

A 2026 dataset from the British Geological Survey provides estimated geometric mean concentrations of Arsenic, Cadmium, Chromium, Nickel, and Lead in Scottish surface soils. The data is derived from the GBASE geochemical survey and converted stream sediment measurements, covering Scotland with broader Great Britain data excluding London.

Use Cases

• Map spatial distributions of Arsenic and Lead concentrations to identify potential contamination hotspots in Scotland
• Analyze correlations between Cadmium, Chromium, and Nickel levels to understand geochemical associations
• Use estimated geometric mean concentrations of potentially harmful elements for regional environmental risk assessment

Strengths

• Data originates from the authoritative British Geological Survey (BGS)
• Provides estimates for five specific heavy metals: Arsenic, Cadmium, Chromium, Nickel, and Lead
• Covers the spatial extent of Scotland with broader Great Britain context

Limitations

• Dataset is explicitly noted as superseded by a newer version
• London area is excluded due to an inadequate number of geochemical samples
• Concentrations are estimates derived from multiple data sources, not direct soil measurements

Provenance

Source

British Geological Survey (BGS)

Collection Method

Based on GBASE (Geochemical Baseline Survey of the Environment) soil data and converted stream sediment data.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated in March 2026, but dataset is superseded.

Geography

Scotland, with data available for most of Great Britain excluding London.