Retrospective and geographical features of forestry use of lands in Podilski Tovtry

Abstract

Forest cover is an important component of the landscape and is responsible for the conservation of other components. Forests of the Podolian Upland are distinguished by a high natural resource potential and a significant risk of manifestation of unfavorable natural processes. The aim of our research is to study the forest cover of Podilski Tovtry and analyze the dynamics of its changes for the period from 1880 to the present. Forestry nature management in Tovtry is second only to agriculture in terms of the area of occupied land. Forests of the reef zone and adjacent territories within the Ternopil oblast are part of the Ternopil forestry enterprise and the Medobory Nature Reserve. Within the study area, forests of a relatively large area are confined to the summit surface and slopes of the main ridge. Our research has established that in the period from 1880 to 1930, there was a significant decrease in forest cover practically throughout the entire study area, which is associated with both the need for firewood and agrarian overpopulation and the desire to expand the arable land. A direct relationship was found between the decrease in forest cover and the approach to villages and hamlets. After the Second World War and until the present, there have been no significant changes in forest cover. In some areas, even an increase in forested areas was found. Active forest expansion was observed at the beginning of the two thousandth years amid a decline in agricultural production.