Сільськогосподарське районування Черкаської області в контексті проблеми раціонального використання земельних ресурсів

Abstract

Poor ecological state of the land fund in Cherkasy region is caused, in the first place, by the unreasonable system and practices of land utilization that are not scientifically based. Such factors of land degradation as erosion, anthropogenic pollution, secondary alkalinization, flooding, and landslides are gaining considerable momentum. Excessive level of plowing of agricultural lands, including slopes, considerable expansion of lands under hoed crops, practically complete stopping of soil protection measures, violation of a soil tillage system and other factors have led to the deterioration of lands. The soil of Cherkasy region is some of the most fertile in Ukraine. Chernozem prevails in soil cover, its share makes over 70% of all arable lands square. By mechanical structure, the soil cover of Cherkasy region is practically equally divided into soft-loam, middle-loam and hard-loam soils. The soft-loam soil prevails in the Left-bank part of the region and Dnipro area. The centre of Cherkasy region has a middle-loam soil, and western regions have hard-loam ones. Neglect of the optimal structure of cultivated lands that manifests in the violation of science-based succession of crops in crop rotation presents quite a serious problem. An overall result of the irrational usage of land leads to reducing soil fertility. Excessive part of the tilled area in the structure of cultivated land under the condition of practical stopping of soil protection measures results in the degradation of land recourses that creates a considerable threat to economic security in Cherkasy region. There is a certain relation between the rational usage of land resources and the level of profitability of agricultural enterprises. Since the main aim of enterprise performance lies in obtaining a profit, they are not interested in the deterioration of the properties of land resources as their main means of production. This necessitates protection and careful use of lands under cultivation. Effective government control over land usage is very important, and its main tool to provide the combination of ecologically secure and economically effective usage of land resources should be land management as a key part of land relations. Implementation of state policy aimed at ecologically safe land usage under market conditions should be the basis of land resources management. The scheme of agricultural zoning of Cherkasy region is proposed in the study. Five agricultural regions in its territory are singled out. The criteria used in this scheme show that the southern districts of Cherkasy region have agricultural characteristics which are peculiar for a steppe zone. The Dnipro-Cherkasy and South-Western (with a centre in Uman) agricultural regions have the worst agricultural and ecological characteristics. To increase the efficiency of land resources usage and their preservation it is necessary to renovate violated correlation among tillage, forests, water resources, natural forage lands by reducing plowing. Multi-level organization of influence of management entities while performing the measures to increase the efficiency of usage of land funds in Cherkasy region is of primary importance.