Free Soil Testing

Join Urban Soils Insti­tute on City of For­est Day (Sat­ur­day, Octo­ber 3) for the final Free Soil Test­ing event of 2026 at Earth Matter’s Com­post Learn­ing Center.

Soils are one of our most impor­tant resources, but they can become con­t­a­m­i­nat­ed as a result of indus­tri­al activ­i­ty and lega­cy pol­lu­tion. Com­mon soil con­t­a­m­i­nants, such as lead or arsenic, can cause neg­a­tive health effects to folks who work and play with soils, with young chil­dren at par­tic­u­lar risk.

Find­ing soil con­t­a­m­i­nants requires spe­cial equip­ment — that’s where Urban Soils Institue comes in! With their state-of-the-art hand­held pXRF ana­lyz­er, they can quick­ly screen soil sam­ples for heavy met­al con­tent and deter­mine if reme­di­a­tion is recommended.

No reg­is­tra­tion required — soils will be screened in the order in which they are received.