REMOTE ASSESSMENT OF THE AREA OF FALLOW LANDS OVERGROWN WITH WOODY VEGETATION IN THE NORTH BASHKIR СIS-URALS

Abstract

All over the world, there is noted an increase in the area of fallow lands, which naturally become covered with woody vegetation over time. The Republic of Bashkortostan has significant areas of fallow lands. The paper analyzes the territory of 29 municipal districts of the republic, located in the north of the Bashkir Urals. Remote sensing has revealed areas overgrown with pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and birch (Betula pendula Roth.). The normalized differentiated vegetation index (NDVI) calculated on the basis of Sentinel-2 images was used for the analysis. 35 test sites were surveyed to verify the remote sensing data. The total area of overgrown fallow lands in the north of the Bashkir Urals is 219 thousand hectares, which is 3.75% of the total studied territory. The areas of pine and birch plantations are approximately equal and amount to 1.95% and 1.80%, respectively. Large overgrowth is typical for areas characterized by hilly and mountainous terrain. The study has noted a tendency for the agricultural development of the territory to affect the proportion of fallow lands overgrown with forest. With an expanding agricultural development, there is noted a decrease in the overgrowth with woody vegetation (r = -0.52). Factors such as the structure of the state forest fund and the peculiarities of seed formation and germination of tree species also influence the spread of pine and birch plantations. Of particular importance for pine plantations in the Bashkir Urals is the protection of relict pine forests and old-growth forests.