Combined, these two volumes feature over 370 geotechnical and geoenvironmental standards that cover soil testing, including compaction, sampling, field investigation, cyclic and dynamic properties, soil texture, plasticity, density characteristics, hydrological properties and hydraulic barriers, and rock for erosion control. Other standards focus on ground water and vadose zone investigations, how to measure the properties of soil-cement, and tests for peats, mosses, and humus.

In addition to the above subjects, Volume 04.09 also includes standards on surface and subsurface characterization, erosion and sediment control technology, frozen soils and rock, geotechnics of waste management, and information retrieval and data automation.