Spatial analysis of long-term land-use development in regard to physiotopes: case studies from the Carpathians

Abstract

The influence of abiotic conditions on land-use development since the nineteenth century is assessed in case studies from the Czech and Slovak Carpathians. Hypotheses claim that significant land-use changes have occurred, but without pronounced differences because of similar abiotic conditions in the case studies. Abiotic conditions are expressed by physiotopes, which contain information on georelief, lithology, and soil. Our results indicate a high rate of land-use change in both case studies, and a detailed analysis of changes in two sequential periods reveals significant differences in five of the six periods compared in these case studies. Areas along state border seem to be more affected by anthropogenic changes as the proportion of plots with stable land use was only 25.7% in the Czech area (Starý Hrozenkov, Vápenice, and Vyškovec) compared to 47.6% in the Slovak area (Lietavská Svinná-Babkov). Repeated land-use changes occurred mostly in valley floors and adjacent slopes. Land-use changes in the study areas are only partly explained by the abiotic conditions in physiotope and morphometric attributes, as shown by multiple correspondence analysis. The crucial difference in land use is in different settlement structures, which reflect differences in historical development.