Soil Nitrogen

AUS-TCF-CON-SON General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

16000 mg/kg

Direction: Higher is desirable ↑

Form: Point

Scoring Curve

This curve shows how a field measurement for this indicator would score across all available benchmark forms in this context.

Evidence & Context

A temperate rainforest in southern South America was reported to have a total nitrogen concentration of 1.6% in the topsoil.1 This is a considerably higher value, equivalent to 16 g N/kg soil or 16000 mg N/kg soil.

Metric Definition:

Total soil nitrogen concentration in the topsoil of a temperate rainforest in southern South America.

Benchmark Definition:

Total soil nitrogen concentration in the topsoil of a temperate rainforest in southern South America.

Justification:

High nitrogen value likely due to fertile volcanic parent materials and high nitrogen fixation rates.

Sources (1)

Carbon and nitrogen in forest soils: Potential indicators for sustainable management of eucalypt forests in south-eastern Australia | Request PDF - ResearchGate, accessed May 27, 2025, Journal

Carbon and nitrogen in forest soils: Potential indicators for ...

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Context

Region Australia
Biome Temperate Coastal Forests & Woodlands
Land Use Conservation / Protected Natural Areas
Assessment Pristine Reference
Vegetation Forest
Evidence Type ReferenceCondition

Lifecycle

Status Active
Version 1
Effective From 24 Mar 2026

Notes

No upper detrimental threshold — higher values are always better up to natural saturation. This value illustrates the upper end of the nitrogen spectrum in temperate forests.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TCF-CON-SON family.