Land use changes in Czech border regions (1845-2000)

Abstract

In this study, we examine land use changes in border regions of Czechia during last 160 years. We assume that the proximity to a border has influenced the state and development of population, economy and institutions of these regions, and therefore also the structure and changes of their agriculture, landscape and land use. Our research benefits from the database of land use in Czechia, in which shares of eight basic land use categories are known for four time horizons (1845, 1948, 1990 and 2000) in 8903 socal1ed Basic Territorial Units. For the purpose of our study, we have defined four basic sub-sets of BTU's in relation to their position towards the state border. Set "At border" (A) are BTU's adjoining the border (n = 395); set "Intermediate" (B) are BTU's adjoining the BTU's ofset A (n = 571); set "At interior' (C) are BTU's adjoining BTU's ofset B (n = 580); and set "interior" (0) are remaining BTU's (n = 7357). It is obvious that land use changes in border regions depend on overall geopolitical situation and on political relations with respective countries. Thus, the above-mentioned sub-sels A, B and C (together n = 1546) were further divided according to which country they adjoin - former West Germany (n = 288), former East Germany (n = 316), Poland (n = 491), Slovakia (n = 168) and Austria (n = 283).

This article seeks to examine and explain land use changes between the years 1845-1948-1990-2000 in these sub-sets of BTU's. Wc focused on five most important and interesting land use categories - arable land, meadows and pastures (together permanent grasslands), forested areas and built-up areas. Besides that, two aggregate characteristics - Index of Change (IC) and Coefficient of Ecological Stability (CES) - served us for a complex assessment of changes of landscape macrostructure in border regions. Our results are depicted in graphs. However, the delimitation of these sub-sets strongly correlates with other natural and socio-economic characteristics that influence land use changes. Border regions of Czechia are typical of worse natural conditions, peripheral geographical position and lower socio-economic activity. We showed this fact by cross-correlations with two representative characteristics of BTU's - one natural (official price of agricultural land) and one socio-economic (density of population)