The Department of Soil Science and Soil Geography is a leading educational and research center of soil science in the Western region of Ukraine. The faculty members have achieved remarkable success in science, become well-known experts, and contributed to the development of soil science in Ukraine.
During its functioning, the department has trained more than 300 highly qualified soil scientists, 9 Doctors of Sciences and 41 Candidates of Sciences, including 5 Doctors of Philosophy in the specialty 103 Earth Sciences. The Department has a specialized academic council for the degree of Doctor of Science in the specialty 11.00.05 – Biogeography and Geography of Soils.
The department has established and operates a scientific school of genetic soil science.
The results of scientific research by the Department staff of Soil Science and Soil Geography are covered in many professional Ukrainian and foreign publications, including journals indexed in scientometric databases. In 1998, the department established the Soils of Ukraine series, which has published 30 monographs so far.
The book “Professor Ivan Gogolev” was published in the series “Ukrainian Soil Scientists” (Lviv, 2009). The department’s faculty published 2 textbooks, 28 manuals, and 15 methodological materials.
The leading areas of scientific activity of the staff of the Department of Soil Science and Soil Geography are the development of theoretical and practical foundations of genesis, geography, classification and ecology of soils, clarification of the ecological role of soil in the biosphere, solving the problem of rational use and protection of soils, establishing classification and diagnostic features and parameters of soils in accordance with European and international classifications, establishing diagnostic features of soil formation processes, research of soil formations (orthosteins, nodules, etc.).
The peculiarity of the department’s scientific activity is the development of new directions in soil research: informational soil science, social soil science, investment attractiveness of soils, and soil formation energy.
The department is conducting research on the state-funded topic “Soil and Land Resources of the Western Region of Ukraine”.
Soil scientists of the Department of Soil Science and Soil Geography cooperate with scientists from Poland, Austria, Germany, Belarus, Moldova, Turkey and other countries; they participate in the work of the International Society of Soil Science (IUSS), the European Society of Soil Science (ESSC), the Ukrainian Society of Soil Science and Agrochemistry (UTGA in Ukrainian) and other organizations.