Soil Potassium

AUS-AKW-LVG-SOK General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

40 mg/kg
Direction: Higher is desirable ↑
Form: MinimumOnly

Scoring Curve

Scoring curve unavailable

The scoring engine could not generate a curve for this benchmark context. The primary form is CompositeFramework, but the benchmark data may be missing required fields (e.g., optimal range bounds for an OptimalRange benchmark). This is typically a data quality issue in the benchmark pipeline.

Contributing Benchmarks

CompositeFramework Primary MaximumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MinimumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard MinimumOnly Guard CompositeFramework Guard CompositeFramework Guard

Evidence & Context

A hard floor for ecosystem function can be established using the agronomic deficiency data as a reference. If available potassium levels were to fall into the range of <40 mg/kg, this would represent a severely degraded state.

Metric Definition:

Soil potassium level below which ecosystem function is severely degraded.

Benchmark Definition:

This benchmark defines a critical lower threshold for soil potassium indicating severe ecosystem degradation in the biome.

Justification:

Based on agronomic deficiency data indicating severe degradation below 40 mg/kg.

Sources (1)

Preview of Nullarbor bioregion - DCCEEW, accessed July 27, 2025
Nullarbor bioregion - DCCEEW, accessed July 27, 2025 Journal

Nullarbor bioregion - DCCEEW, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source

Supporting Sources (22)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

Preview of (PDF) Soil potassium—crop response calibration relationships and criteria for field crops grown in Australia - ResearchGate, accessed July 18, 2025,
(PDF) Soil potassium—crop response calibration relationships and criteria for field crops grown in Australia - ResearchGate, accessed July 18, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Nutrient Cycling in Australian Savannas on JSTOR - DOI

View Source
Preview of 3 - Understand nutritional properties of major arid zone pasture plants - MBFP-Pastoral, accessed July 24, 2025
3 - Understand nutritional properties of major arid zone pasture plants - MBFP-Pastoral, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

3 - Understand nutritional properties of major arid zone pasture plants - MBFP-Pastoral, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Calcareous Soils Initiative - GRDC, accessed July 22, 2025,
Calcareous Soils Initiative - GRDC, accessed July 22, 2025,
Contextual Support Government

Some Characteristics of Calcareous soils. A review A.S. Taalab1, G.W. Ageeb2, Hanan S. Siam1 and Safaa A. Mahmoud1 - CURRENT RESEARCH WEB

View Source
Preview of Chemical fractions of potassium in arid region calcareous soils: The ..., accessed July 24, 2025
Chemical fractions of potassium in arid region calcareous soils: The ..., accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support

Chemical fractions of potassium in arid region calcareous soils: The ..., accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of DEMIRS Data and Software Centre, accessed July 24, 2025
DEMIRS Data and Software Centre, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

DEMIRS Data and Software Centre, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Farm-scale nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulfur balances and use efficiencies on Australian dairy farms - CSIRO Publishing, accessed July 18, 2025,
Farm-scale nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulfur balances and use efficiencies on Australian dairy farms - CSIRO Publishing, accessed July 18, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Farm-scale nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulfur balances and use efficiencies on Australian dairy farms - CSIRO Publishing

View Source
Preview of Geology of the Nullarbor Plain (Webb and James 2006; courtesy JA Webb). - ResearchGate, accessed July 26, 2025,
Geology of the Nullarbor Plain (Webb and James 2006; courtesy JA Webb). - ResearchGate, accessed July 26, 2025,
Contextual Support

Geology of the Nullarbor Plain (Webb and James 2006; courtesy JA Webb). - ResearchGate, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Good Pastoral Land Management Guidelines - Government of ..., accessed July 24, 2025
Good Pastoral Land Management Guidelines - Government of ..., accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Government

Good Pastoral Land Management Guidelines - Government of ..., accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Karst features and remnant dune systems on the Nullarbor Plain, Australia, accessed July 26, 2025,
Karst features and remnant dune systems on the Nullarbor Plain, Australia, accessed July 26, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Repairing gully erosion in Western Australia - Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development

View Source
Preview of Long-term rundown of plant-available potassium in Western Australia requires a re-evaluation of potassium management for grain production: a review - BioOne Complete, accessed July 10, 2025
Long-term rundown of plant-available potassium in Western Australia requires a re-evaluation of potassium management for grain production: a review - BioOne Complete, accessed July 10, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Long-term rundown of plant-available potassium in Western Australia requires a re-evaluation of potassium management for grain production: a review - BioOne Complete

View Source
Preview of Maireana sedifolia - Botanic Gardens Plant Selector, accessed July 24, 2025
Maireana sedifolia - Botanic Gardens Plant Selector, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Maireana sedifolia - Botanic Gardens Plant Selector, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Nullarbor Plain - Wikipedia, accessed July 25, 2025,
Nullarbor Plain - Wikipedia, accessed July 25, 2025,
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Nullarbor Plain - Wikipedia, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Nutrient Composition of Atriplex Leaves Grown in Saudi Arabia - Journals, accessed July 24, 2025
Nutrient Composition of Atriplex Leaves Grown in Saudi Arabia - Journals, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support

Nutrient Composition of Atriplex Leaves Grown in Saudi Arabia - Journals, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Potassium in Soils - International Potash Institute, accessed July 24, 2025
Potassium in Soils - International Potash Institute, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Potassium in Soils - International Potash Institute, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Soil Testing and Interpretation for Vegetable Crops - AUSVEG, accessed July 24, 2025
Soil Testing and Interpretation for Vegetable Crops - AUSVEG, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Soil Testing and Interpretation for Vegetable Crops - AUSVEG, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of South Australia | Flag, Facts, Maps, & Points of Interest | Britannica, accessed July 24, 2025
South Australia | Flag, Facts, Maps, & Points of Interest | Britannica, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

South Australia | Flag, Facts, Maps, & Points of Interest | Britannica, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of The dynamics of potassium in some Australian soils - Adelaide Research & Scholarship, accessed July 24, 2025
The dynamics of potassium in some Australian soils - Adelaide Research & Scholarship, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support

The dynamics of potassium in some Australian soils - Adelaide Research & Scholarship, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - CORE, accessed July 24, 2025
The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - CORE, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support

The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - CORE

View Source
Preview of The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - ResearchGate
The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - ResearchGate
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

The Dynamics of Potassium in some Australian soils - ResearchGate, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of The Ecograze Project - developing guidelines to better ... - FutureBeef, accessed July 10, 2025,
The Ecograze Project - developing guidelines to better ... - FutureBeef, accessed July 10, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

finalrepport - MLA, accessed July 23, 2025,

View Source
Preview of The Western Australian Rangeland Monitoring System (WARMS) – operating a regional scale monitoring system - ResearchGate, accessed July 24, 2025
The Western Australian Rangeland Monitoring System (WARMS) – operating a regional scale monitoring system - ResearchGate, accessed July 24, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Western Australian Rangeland Monitoring System (WARMS) – operating a regional scale monitoring system - ResearchGate, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source
Preview of Works cited Nullarbor plain | Article for mature travellers - Odyssey Traveller, accessed July 23, 2025
Works cited Nullarbor plain | Article for mature travellers - Odyssey Traveller, accessed July 23, 2025
Contextual Support

Karst features and remnant dune systems on the Nullarbor Plain, Australia, accessed July 24, 2025

View Source

Context

  • Region Australia
  • Biome Arid Karstic Woodlands & Shrublands
  • Land Use Livestock Grazing & Pasture
  • Assessment Not Stated
  • Evidence Type DegradationThreshold

Lifecycle

  • Status Active
  • Version 2
  • Effective From 10 Jun 2026

Notes

Represents a severe degradation threshold far below the natural potassium state. AssessmentContext defaulted to 'Not Stated' because the source document did not state one.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-AKW-LVG-SOK family.

— mg/kg Moderate
Livestock Grazing & Pasture · Not Stated
CompositeFramework Active v1
280 mg/kg Moderate
Livestock Grazing & Pasture · Not Stated
MinimumOnly Superseded v1