Landscape transformation in Czechia over the last 30 years: diversity of changes on two spatial levels

Abstract

Over the last 30 years, Czechia has experienced significant landscape transformations following the fall of communism in 1989. This study aims to map and analyse these landscape transformations, focusing particularly on the diversity of changes during the transformation period. In contrast to the socialist era, characterized by uniform changes like widespread conversion of agricultural land for construction, industrialization, and large-scale farming on extensive arable land blocks, the transformation period shows a greater diversity of changes. These include landscape extensification (e.g. afforestation and grassing over), efforts towards reclamation, and adoption of sustainable agricultural practices. However, arable land remains significantly threatened by intensive suburbanization and urbanization. We demonstrate these trends at two spatial levels: first, at the national scale using the cartograms that illustrate broad, general trends, and second, in greater detail within selected study areas that showcase the variability of changes, which cannot be adequately captured at a national map scale.