Abstract - Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization PAS

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Many of Poland’s valleys resemble those of the Mała Panew and Liswarta (and their tributaries) in featuring the remains of old hydrotechnical infrastructure formerly used by gristmills, steel plants and sawmills. As the importance of water as their main source of energy declined, such earlier industrial plants were gradually closed down, with a steady process of deterioration of hydrotechnical infrastructure then set in train. Beavers were reintroduced into the catchments of the Mała Panew and Liswarta in the 1990s, with the rodents immediately commencing with the adaptation of anthropogenically-transformed habitats to better meet their needs. Against this background, research was conducted to determine: • the number of beaver sites in the river valleys in question, and especially the number within or near disused items of hydrotechnical infrastructure, • the ways in which beavers have “managed“ the infrastructural items in question, • the impact beavers’ activities have had on the environment in the valleys studied. The locations and functions of old items of hydrotechnical infrastructure were determined by reference to archival maps. To assess beavers’ activities, 6 sections of watercourse of lengths 0.5-7 km were selected, with locations of beaver dams and ponds, as well as other traces of activity by the animals, documented and described. With a view to findings being summarized, distinctions were drawn between various methods of adaptation of former hydrotechnical objects by beavers , i.e. 1 – dams built in the channels of regulated rivers, 2 – dams built in culverts, 3 – former millrace/water channels (used by gristmills or ironworks) occupied and adapted, 4 – banks of retention ponds occupied, 5 – waters in river channels dammed and basins of old ponds flooded, 6 – banks of ponds serving fire-fighting purposes occupied, 7 – former pond dams restored. Beavers can adapt successfully to – and also themselves adapt – anthropogenically-transformed environments in river valleys. In this regard, the rodents were found to be more eager to occupy the tributaries of the Mała Panew and Liswarta than the rivers themselves. The valleys offer suitable conditions for beavers, given channels that are shallow (of 0.3-0.6 m), slightly sloping (2.2-6.7 m/km), with sandy or sandy-sludgy bottoms, as well as access to deciduous trees growing nearby. Along the Mała Panew and Liswarta themselves, beavers make use of side channels and millraces. Most numerous traces of beavers’ activity were to be observed along forested stretches of the Leńca and Olszynka Valleys, which are found to have been transformed by beavers along 28-35% of their lengths. The animals made instinctive use of relic items of hydrotechnical infrastructure, with an interesting case involving the “restoration” by beavers of old embankments of anthropogenic ponds on the Rów Kokocki and the Leńca. Above beaver ponds (on the Rów Kokocki) or between ponds (on the Olszynka and Leńca), reduced channel slope and increased channel sinuosity contribute to the creation of side channels. Along these sections, transport channels made by beavers are vulnerable to avulsion and the emergence of multi-channel sections of watercourses.
Many Polish cities, especially large ones, have been experiencing gradual depopulation, partially resulting from emigration. Likewise, major part of former city dwellers are moving out nearby – toward neighbouring suburban rural municipalities. However, not every suburban municipality experiences residential function development to the same extent. It can be observed that among municipalities neighbouring the city there are units with high level of migration attractiveness ratio, where residential growth occurs dynamically, as well as those with less pronounced intensity. In this study, the author attempted to identify factors causing such differentiation and constituting barriers for residential function development in particular units. The aim has been achieved through careful analysis of selected cases and comparison of chosen municipalities. Research has shown that barriers result from, inter alia, unfavourable ownership structure and type of land use, insufficient development of communication and technical infrastructure, excessive distance between village/town with local authorities and the city, improper local policy and complex legacy. It was also underlined that environmental barriers do not always have a significant impact on residential function development.
May landscape description be considered an eco-critical metaphor? This paper proposes a text analysis of two post-apocalyptic narratives, Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, as novel and movie, and the zombie drama The Walking Dead, as graphic novel and television series. Neither narrative provides an explanation for its apocalypse, or a direct warning as regards human environmental misbehaviour. But both the barren landscape described in the former work, and the renaturalizing one presented in the latter second may convey an environmental meaning, albeit in a different way. To evaluate the way in which contemporary audiences negotiate this, further research would be necessary.
Meadows are characteristic features of the forested mountain landscape in the northern temperate zone. In terms of origin, they can be classified as natural, semi-natural and improved. Mountain meadows have great ecological value due to vast biodiversity and the ecosystem services they provide. However, over the past few decades, a significant decrease in their area has been observed in many places across the world. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the scale and the main drivers of forest encroachment on temperate mountain meadows as well as to describe current research directions and methods. The observed decline in meadow area may be driven by natural factors related generally to climate change or may result from changes in land use. This process is investigated on a variety of spatial scales ranging from experimental plots to entire geographic regions. Studies on forest encroachment on mountain meadows are now carried out by researchers from many different countries. Nevertheless, there still does not exist a complex, multidisciplinary approach and comparative studies for different mountain ranges are not found in the literature.
Measurements of precipitation conducted at the WULS-SGGW meteorological station in Warsaw in 2012-2014 and 2019-2020 using a tipping-bucket rain gauge and the laser disdrometer (Parsivel) as well as data obtained from the meteorological radar allowed to collect data enabling the assessment of the usefulness of the disdrometer and radar for estimating rainfalls. The data for the entire study period were used for analysis the correlation relationship between the 24-hour rainfall depths estimated on the basis of the rain gauge and the disdrometer. From the data set for the years 2012-2014, 21 individual events were selected for further analysis, for which rainfall data estimated on the basis of radar in the form of a PAC hydrological product were also available. The rainfall data from the disdrometer and radar were used for analysis the correlation relationships between them and corresponding measurements from the rain gauge. The scope of the study also included a comparison of the values of rainfall totals estimated for 21 single events using the disdrometer and radar in relation to data measured with the rain gauge. The simple method of adjusting the depths of rainfall estimated on the basis of the disdrometer proposed in this paper, was able to reduce significantly the differences in the values of rainfall totals for single events between the data from the disdrometer and the rain gauge.
Medium-sized cities are an important component of the settlement system and are often described as a joining link between urban and rural areas. However, in recent decades they have been impacted by growing competition from large cities which have tremendous appeal for the post-Fordist economy and for various segments of the population. This paper analyses the demographic trajectories of 99 medium-sized cities in Italy with provincial capital status, from the beginning of the twenty-first century to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over a twenty-year period marked by many difficulties for the Italian economy in an international context, what has the demographic performance of these cities been? The research addresses two areas. On the one hand, it analyses the demographic vitality of the provincial capitals compared to the metropolitan centres; on the other, it follows the redistribution of populations in the provincial capitals’ urban areas, which coincide with the employment areas (Sistemi locali del lavoro). Significant behavioural discontinuities emerge between the decade of 2000-2010 and the following decade, which was characterised by a gradual recovery after the shock of the Great Recession. The picture was changed further by the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, persistent differences between the medium-sized cities of Northern and Southern Italy stand out, but so do new internal divisions within the country, reframing this historical dualism.
Migration flow is an important factor determining the number of population, at the same time showing how the spatial distribution of population is constantly adapting to continuous changes in socio-economic conditions. Due to migration of people, variations are observed in: structure of population, spatial distribution of population, and total population growth. The issues of the migration flows of the Polish population have been the subject matter of plethora of academic studies and research projects, including publications with both a nationwide and a regional focus. This paper is an attempt to present the status and changes in the intensity of migration flows in northern Poland. The timeframe of studies spans between 2004 and 2013. Simultaneously, for a more comprehensive analysis of the problem, the following aspects are examined: spatial differences in migration balance – status of permanent residence among 1000 people (internal and external flows) – at the level of rural communes in the studied region. In its next stage, the research is directed at selection of rural communes characterised by a negative net migration rate i.e. where the negative migration flows were observed throughout the entire period of 2004–2013 per 1000 people and at examination of the dynamics of change in population number between 2004 and 2013.
Migration in the Presheva Valley is an integral part of the past and present, affected by social and historical processes, which also have demographic, social, economic and cultural consequences. The Presheva Valley, similar to other territories of the former Yugoslavia, is distinguished by low economic development and this phenomenon has been present through decades. As such, the Presheva Valley is traditionally a migrant area. Backwardness in economic and infrastructural development causes many problems of a social and economic nature, while permanent growth of the absolute and relative number of people is manifested by an increase in the number of the agricultural population, fragmentation of agricultural land, etc. All these circumstances force the population to migrate and find work in European countries. The aim of the research is to identify factors which stimulate migration, to analyze the period, causes and directions of migration, the negative effects of migration as well as benefits for the migrant’s homeland. The study offers an overview of current migration trends and it could serve as a good basis for regional policymakers in the field of migration with the final goal of interrupting the regressive social and demographic processes and accelerate economic development.
Mobility by individual transport is determined by many factors that influence the ownership and use of a car. These factors can be divided into categories related to: spatial structure, household socio-economic and demographic characteristics, situation associated with a given journey, including purposes of journey-making. The aim of the paper is to have a closer look at the aforementioned factors with particular reference to spatial aspect. The conclusions to the article underline that the traffic congestion increases and the quality of public transport improves with the growth of settlement network density, which results in a lower level of car use and lower level of motorization rate. This is particularly noticeable in large cities. In turn, in peripherally located rural areas, there is lack of alternative modes of transport, which, combined with longer travel distances to destinations, contributes both to increased motorization as well as to a relatively higher cars’ mileages.
Most of the Polish-Czech borderland is of great tourist attractiveness and has a considerable potential for tourism development. In order for a tourist region to function properly, appropriate public transport is necessary, which in the analysed case also includes cross-border transport. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the level of development of cross-border public transport in the Polish-Czech borderland from the perspective of its attractiveness and the development of tourism functions. Despite the fact that both Poland and Czechia joined Schengen the development of cross-border journeys’ range has been relatively slow (in some cases even diminishing). The coordination of services organised by the two countries is poor in terms of routes and timetables (in the latter case especially taking into account tourists’ needs). Locations where it is possible to cross the border using means of public transport are located irregularly and do not always correspond with the tourist attractiveness of a region. For the tourists who do not have a vehicle or for those who consciously refrain from using the car on holidays, the border is still a barrier.
Mountain areas are ecosystems very vulnerable to fluctuations and changes of climate. As a consequence, research into climate and climate change in Poland’s Karkonosze and Tatra Mountains has been ongoing for several years now, and has already yielded essential information regarding these highest ranges in Poland. However, there remains a paucity of research comparing features of climate in the two chains of mountains. In consequence, the work detailed here has sought to compare key climate characteristics in these ranges, as well as their seasonal and multiannual changes over the period 1951‒2015. The research is based on daily meteorological records from within the network of Poland’s Institute of Meteorology and Water Management – National Research Institute. In the case of the Karkonosze Mts., it was the meteorological stations at Śnieżka (Ś, 1603 m a.s.l.) and Jelenia Góra (JG, 344 m a.s.l.) that were chosen; while in the Tatras the selected stations were on Kasprowy Wierch (KW, 1990 m a.s.l.) and in Zakopane (Z, 857 m a.s.l.). Additionally, the station at Hala Gąsienicowa (HG, 1520 m a.s.l.) was considered in line with data available for the shorter 1981‒2015 period. The research took account of daily data on air temperature, relative humidity of the air, wind speed, precipitation and snow cover. Specifically, the climate characteristics calculated and analysed by reference to mean multiannual, yearly and seasonal values related to air temperature, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, precipitation totals and maximum snow depth. Further analysis related to numbers of days with precipitation and snow cover, as well as numbers of days with specific air temperatures described as hot (Tmax >25°C), frosty (Tmax <0°C), very frosty (Tmin<-10°C) and icy (Tmax<-10°C). Several climate similarities and differences between the Tatra and Karkonosze Mts. were found to include: 1. mean annual altitudinal gradients for air temperature that are similar for the Tatras (-0.53°C per 100 m) and the Karkonosze (-0.55°C/100 m), 2. the coldest month at the bottoms of both ridges being January, and the warmest July; while top stations feature a 1-month delay, in the sense that February and August are the coldest and warmest months respectively, 3. differing altitudinal gradients of maximum temperature, with the Tatras reporting -0.77°C per 100 m and the Karkonosze – -0. 88°C/100 m, 4. yearly precipitation totals and altitudinal precipitation gradients that are significantly less well-marked in the Karkonosze than in the Tatras (respectively 1212 and 1721 mm, as well as 38.0 and 52.9 mm per 100 m), 5. more precipitation days on Śnieżka than Kasprowy Wierch (237 v 227), 6. relative humidity of air that is highest in autumn and winter below the two ranges, while being highest at the summits in summer, 7. a wind speed in the Karkonosze that is higher than in the Tatras; i.e. 12.2 v 6.6 m/s at the summits, and 2.5 and 1.4 m/s respectively down below, 8. snow cover of 218 days duration at the top of the Tatra Mts., as opposed to 187 days on Mt. Śnieżka. The study also considered multiannual changes in elements of climate over the 1951–2015. Trends achieving statistical significance (with 99, 95% or 90% confidence levels) were confined to just some of the characteristics and stations. Nevertheless, the Tatra and Karkonosze Mts. have experienced an increase in mean annual air temperature – respectively of 0.20–0.27 and 0.22–0.40°C each consecutive 10-year period. Significant changes were also observed for maximum temperature, Tmax equal to 0.35–0.36°C per 10 years in the Tatras and 0.4–0.5°C per decade in the Karkonosze. In the case of precipitation totals the only significant change in value is that noted for Śnieżka top, where the trend is a downward one equal to some 71 mm per 10 years. Where snow cover was concerned, the only effect was a slight decrease in the number of snowy days recorded at Zakopane, located just below the Tatra Mountains
Mountain areas create specific features of local climates (by modification of air circulation, insolation, air temperature, precipitation, wind regime) and greatly affect ambient weather conditions which influence different kinds of human (climbing, skiing, walking, etc.). However, till now only few studies of human bioclimate in individual mountain ridges in Europe were done. The aim of the present study is to assess thermal stress features represented by Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) in nine mountain systems in Central and Eastern Europe. 37 meteorological stations located at altitudes of 237-3580 m above sea level were considered. The data represent midday observational term and cover the period 2000-2017. Mean, highest and lowest annual thermal stress values and annual frequency of cold and heat stress days are analysed The conducted studies have demonstrated that in the examined mountain systems thermal stress conditions are dependent (though to a various extent) mostly on altitude (UTCI values and heat stress days decrease and number of cold stress days rise significantly due to increase of altitude). However, impacts of latitude and longitude is well seen only in altitude belt of 300-1000 m a.s.l.
Mstów is a village located in the Śląskie Voivodship, by the Warta river. For a long time local authorities were not recognizing the potential of the village despite of numerous tourist attractions (main square, barns, old church, limestone outlier – ‘Rock of love’), the village was not considered as tourists’ object of interests. One of the first steps regarding revitalization was cleaning up riverside land near the ‘Rock of love’ and purification of artificial lake. New walking paths and the beach started to attract tourists. Nearby, the river fish bar was opened and another restaurant appeared near the main square. The next step consisted of ‘Outdoor design” workshops, during which students from Silesian universities considered how to improve the quality of public space. Local authorities have taken care of creating corporate design for Mstów and set up ‘Apple Fest’ – an annual event for merchandising fruits planted by local fruit farmers. An interest in village’s history also occurred. In 2012 Mstów was celebrating 800th anniversary of bishops’ congress, during this event lectures about history of the village, church and local order were given. Archeological and ethnographic researches were initiated. Historical barn district was a master thesis’ topic of the author. Revitalization and local authorities’ interest has brought positive effect. Event related to local farming is advertising the village, which is also growing in tourism. The villagers have become interested in history of Mstów and seen cultural value of the place, they are live in. Despite all the effort, there are still a lot to improve. Barn district is deteriorating and may vanish soon. Interest from local authorities and inhabitants is needed, because they do not see these building as a local heritage.
Multifunctional agriculture is nowadays a key issue of the second pillar of the EU’s Common Agriculture Policy. The concept of multifunctional agriculture is also seen as a possible development scenario for EU rural areas. But the question of the territorial impact of such policy tools has been raised. The main aim of the paper is to analyze the application of the multifuncionality concept in selected EU countries. In particular, the paper engages in a critical reflection of multifunctional agriculture as a specific scenario for rural development in the Czech Republic in the previous period of the programme, 2004 – 2006.
Multifunctional agriculture perfectly corresponds to the concept of the sustainable development of rural areas. It brings environmental benefits: moderate and economical use of resources, respect for natural environment, preservation of agricultural landscape, conservation of animal species and plant varieties valuable in natural terms. Economic advantages related to multifunctional agriculture include additional income for farmers. There are also some social benefits such as: reinforcement of mutual links and acceptance by local communities concerning the development line of their areas. The main idea of multifunctionality is that while there are many agricultural functions expressed in terms of goods, services and markets, agriculture also produces non-market goods, e.g. in helping to preserve the landscape or biodiversity. The existence of both these types of goods is not antagonistic. The connection between the beneficial external effects of farming and its production of market goods is known as jointness. The scenario of support for multifunctional farming in Poland was outlined in the Rural Development Plan 2004–2006, and is continued under the Rural Development Programme 2007–2013. The instruments employed to implement the goals of multifunctional farming and sustainable development of rural areas were the EU measures: Support for agricultural activity in less-favoured areas (LFAs), the agri-environmental programme, and payments for energy crops. On the basis of research incorporating spatial autocorrelation statistics, the RDP 2007–2013 measures supporting multifunctional agriculture in its productive and natural (green) functions were found to have an advantageous effect on the sustainable development of rural areas in the following Voivodeships: Zachodniopomorskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie and Podlaskie as well as northern parts of Mazowieckie and Warmińsko-Mazurskie. Their effect was less significant in southern Poland, as well as in Kujawsko-Pomorskie in the case of organic farming and in Podlaskie and Warmińsko-Mazurskie in the case of energy crops. In the remaining regions support for multifunctional farming had no significant influence on the sustainable development of their rural areas.

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