FOREST DISTRIBUTION ON THE CENTRAL RUSSIAN UPLAND: HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
We studied the change of forestland in the Central Russian Upland within the deciduous forest, forest-steppe, and steppe zones using old maps (XVIII-XX cc.) and current satellite images. The forest distribution within the Central Russian Upland has been relatively stable during the last 220 years. O...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Lomonosov Moscow State University
2014-06-01
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| Series: | Geography, Environment, Sustainability |
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| Online Access: | https://ges.rgo.ru/jour/article/view/19 |
| Summary: | We studied the change of forestland in the Central Russian Upland within the deciduous forest, forest-steppe, and steppe zones using old maps (XVIII-XX cc.) and current satellite images. The forest distribution within the Central Russian Upland has been relatively stable during the last 220 years. On average, the decrease in the forested area was small. However, we identified significant changes in certain regions. In the southern part of CRU, the significant increase of the forested land is caused by the forest protection of abatis woodland and afforestation. During the last 100 years, reforestation took place mainly in the Oka basin due to both afforestation and natural reforestation. New forests appeared generally in ravines within all zones. The analysis of the abatis forests changes from the XVIII to XX cc. allowed us to identify forested area within the Central Russian Upland prior to active development. |
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| ISSN: | 2071-9388 2542-1565 |