Soil Organic Carbon (SOC)

AUS-TDG-LVG-SOC General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

No specific value — see range

Range: 2 to 2.5 %

Optimal Range: 2 to 2.5

Direction: Higher is desirable ↑

Form: OptimalRange

Scoring Curve

This curve shows how a field measurement for this indicator would score across all available benchmark forms in this context. The scoring engine uses 13 benchmarks together — the OptimalRange form drives the primary score, while 12 guard(s) constrain the result.

Contributing Benchmarks

OptimalRange Primary MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard LowerThreshold Guard OptimalRange Guard Point Guard LowerThreshold Guard OptimalRange Guard LowerThreshold Guard OptimalRange Guard

Evidence & Context

For temperate grazing systems in moderate rainfall zones (>600mm), SOC levels exceeding 2.0-2.5% (0-10cm) appear indicative of high ecological health.

Metric Definition:

Optimal range of Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) in the 0-10 cm soil layer indicative of high ecological health in Temperate Dry Woodlands & Native Grasslands under sustainable grazing.

Benchmark Definition:

Range of SOC levels where ecosystem health, productivity, and resilience are maximized under sustainable grazing in Temperate Dry Woodlands & Native Grasslands.

Justification:

Based on multiple studies showing SOC levels above 2.0-2.5% in moderate rainfall zones correlate with high ecological health.

Sources (1)

Preview of Grazing management for soil carbon in Australia: A review - ResearchGate, accessed August 5, 2025,

Grazing management for soil carbon in Australia: A review - ResearchGate, accessed August 5, 2025, Journal

Managing grazing to increase ground cover in rangelands: using remote sensing to detect change | Request PDF - ResearchGate

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Supporting Sources (3)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

(PDF) Soil organic carbon stocks in saline and sodic landscapes

Contextual Support GreyLiterature

(PDF) Soil organic carbon stocks in saline and sodic landscapes

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Pasture cropping on Winona - A Soils For Life case study

Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Pasture cropping on Winona - A Soils For Life case study

View Source

Preview of Soil carbon sequestration in rangelands: A critical review of the impacts of major management strategies - ResearchGate, accessed August 5, 2025,

Soil carbon sequestration in rangelands: A critical review of the impacts of major management strategies - ResearchGate, accessed August 5, 2025,

Direct Evidence Journal

final repport - Department of Primary Industries, Queensland, accessed July 17, 2025,

View Source

Context

Region Australia
Biome Temperate Dry Woodlands & Native Grasslands
Land Use Livestock Grazing & Pasture
Assessment Pristine Reference
Evidence Type HealthyOperationalRange

Lifecycle

Status Active
Version 1
Effective From 17 Mar 2026

Notes

Optimal SOC is context-dependent and varies with local climate and soil conditions; no fixed universal range established.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TDG-LVG-SOC family.