engleski

Land use changes on the islands of Croatia: drivers and consequences

The Croatian Islands form an archipelago of approximately 1250 islands, islets, rocks and rocks awash along the eastern Adriatic coastline. Out of that number, only 50 islands are permanently populated. Karst environment and climate conditions predetermined them as areas of traditional Mediterranean agriculture. Islands have been inhabited since prehistory, and scientific research enables the reconstruction of their main land use types. Further, the systematic land survey makes it possible to accurately determine the share of specific land use types from the 19th century. Preliminary results indicate the peak of agriculture activities and land use at the turn of the 20th century due to the demographic increase and conjuncture in wine production. The islands’ population started to decline during the 1920s, which resulted in land abandonment and succession of the natural vegetation. Nowadays, only a small share of land is cultivated, mainly by lucrative plants like olive trees and grapes. As a result, Mediterranean maquis and forests cover most islands’ surfaces, which increases the risk of summer fires and threatens the traditional agricultural landscape. This research aims to determine the main factors that influenced land use changes and landscape development in the last century. Such encompassing approach for all Croatian Islands has not been applied before. Furthermore, the results will be compared to other Mediterranean Islands. The methodology compares land use categories from different periods and sources, such as archival cadastral data, agriculture censuses and contemporary satellite imagery. We will also compare land use intensity depending on the island’s size, population and distance from the mainland. In our opinion, this research would contribute to understanding complex social processes on the islands in certain historical circumstances and their influence on the formation of the different land use patterns.

Croatian Islands ; land use changes ; Mediterranean landscape

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