Land cover changes of the Belgrade area over the past three centuries

Abstract

This paper studies land cover changes of Belgrade over the past three centuries. For this purpose we applied an interdisciplinary approach by integrating historical and landscape ecological perspectives. We have produced four reconstruction maps presenting land cover at the turn of the 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, based on historical maps and written sources. The conversion of the land cover from historical maps was done based on CORINE Land Cover level 3, while Land Cover level 1 was used for displaying on the reconstruction maps. This allowed us to compare the changes that occurred from the turn of one century to the next. It has been determined that the land cover of Belgrade has transformed from dominantly semi-natural in the 18th century, to agricultural in the 19th century, and artificial in the 20th century. We have determined that the driving forces of the land cover changes were activities that were part of the political agendas of various states that governed Belgrade. The present analysis bridges the gap in the relevant literature on the land cover changes in Belgrade in the long-term, and provides qualitative and quantitative results relevant for research-based management actions, planning processes and restoration ecology.