Topsoil Certification

BS3882 standards are set out by the British Standards Institute. The standard was revised in 2007 (BS3882:2007), replacing the 1994 standard. It is intended for use for topsoils that are imported or traded, and not for ordinary garden topsoil remaining in your garden.

BS3882:2007 sets out only two grades: multipurpose and specific purpose. Multipurpose is suitable for most gardening projects. Specific purpose is designed only for those projects which have very specific needs, such as acidic soil, calcareous soil or low fertility. These soils, however, are not suitable for general landscaping, and should only be used with careful and professional advice.

Certified topsoil must have passed specific analysis parameters to prove:

• Fertility
• Free from Contamination
• Soil Structure and Classification

The standard also sets out how the land should be treated to ensure that it does not get eroded after removal of topsoil.

Topsoil suppliers are also required by the standard to declare the results of topsoil analysis before selling.

This declaration needs to include:

• Where the topsoil came from, and the previous and current land use for natural soils.
• The date of sampling and analysis.
• All The results of analytical tests, including contamination parameters.
• Written confirmation that the soil complies with the standard BS3882:2007, and that it is the grade specified, whether Multi-Purpose or Specific Purpose.

BS3882 Topsoil Certification Suite

This analysis gives a range of compliance for each test for the different grades of topsoil. The report will show a Y or N once determine whether the material complies or doesn’t.