Acta geographica Slovenica

Discharge regimes of Slovenian rivers: 1991–2020

Borut Stojilković, Valentina Brečko Grubar — Wed, 14 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Various researchers have examined discharge regimes of rivers in Slovenia in the past 75 years: four major studies made by Ilešič, Kolbezen, Hrvatin, and lastly Hrvatin and Frantar have analysed and classified the regimes, and clustered them into regime types. They have varied due to changes in discharge characteristics, mainly as a consequence of climate change. In the present paper, we used average monthly discharges between 1991-2020 to calculate the discharge coefficients and determine the modern typology of the regime types on 36 streams at 45 gauging stations. The final result was five types of contemporary discharge regimes which are a consequence of the landscapes' heterogenous climate- and geodiversity characteristics as well as human interventions.

The trends in viticulture and winemaking in the context of wine tourism development in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Radomir Bodiroga, Tijana Banjanin, Dajana Vukojević Ateljević, Simon Kerma — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The article looks at viticulture, wine production and wine tourism in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The cluster analysis was carried out to identify the current situation and to explore the possibilities for the development of wine tourism as an additional segment that can contribute to a better positioning of both sectors and to the diversification of the income of wine producers in the country. The analysis identified three different groups (clusters) of wine producers with different capacities. Given the different structure of wineries, the possibility of diversifying agricultural and rural policy measures must be examined in order to contribute to a more intensive development of viticulture and winemaking which would also encourage the development of the tourist offer for each wine producer.

Land use changes in Southern Croatia (Dalmatia) since the beginning of the 20th century

Anđela Vrkić, Ante Blaće — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This research analyzed land use changes in Southern Croatia over the past 120 years. The methodological approach employed analysis and chronological comparison of archival and statistical data, and geoprocessing of the Corine Land Cover geodatabase. In the period spanning from 1900 to 1945, agriculture was the main activity, accompanied by a notable decline in vineyards. The subsequent era, from 1945 to 1991, was characterized by the dominance of rapid industrialization, onset of land abandonment, and the reversion of former agricultural areas to natural vegetation. Since 1991, the trend of land abandonment and deruralization has persisted and intensified. As a result, shrubs and forests now claim the largest share of the researched area, solidifying a new landscape configuration.

Monitoring the impact of the Corona pandemic on nitrogen dioxide emissions at large scales via Google Earth Engine

Nuri Erkin Öçer, Dilek Küçük Matcı, Uğur Avdan — Fri, 23 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Advances in Earth observation capabilities and the expanded accessibility of data provide the opportunity to monitor air pollution on a global scale. The Google Earth Engine (GEE) enables the efficient conduct of such large-scale research. This article examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on NO₂ emissions at various supranational scales, with particular consideration of the Human Development Index of the countries, using GEE. The findings for the first three months of 2020 indicating a reduction in emissions of more than 4% per month, demonstrate that not only were the restrictions and closures imposed by governments effective in the global decline of NO₂ levels, but also voluntary restrictions imposed by people on their own mobility with the motive of protection from the pandemic.

Environmental responsibility and communication in selected companies in the Podravska statistical region

Zala Virant, Janez Osojnik, Andreja Kozmus — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The paper presents best practices pursued by eight companies from the Podravska statistical region selected because they promote green transition in this society. In the theoretical section, the article presents environmental responsibility as part of corporate social responsibility and deals with the type of communication needed to address and motivate people to implement the EU Green Deal goals. The empirical section analyses eight semi-structured interviews with representatives from selected companies in the Podravska statistical region. The results highlight long-term efforts to raise public awareness about the environmental crisis (without major visible effects), financial aid as the main motivation factor to implement green practices, shortage of specific training courses in communication, and the need for locally focused training.

Mapping the landscape of recent research on agricultural geography (2013–2022)

Sai-Leung Ng, Ching-Hua Tien — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Agricultural geography has developed for over a century. To review the recent development in this field, 1879 journal articles on agricultural geography published between 2013 and 2022 are analyzed using multi-leveled bibliometric methods and visualized by VOSviewer. Seven research themes are identified: “climate change and food”, “environmental sustainability”, “land and political ecology”, “water resources”, “rural geography”, “economic development”, and “spatial analysis”. Theory and practice are the two research strands, with few authors publishing extensively, indicating a lack of an active long-term research community. Geographical factors significantly influence agricultural geography research, with international collaborations showing regional patterns. China is an emerging player, developing independently from Western peers.

Unveiling the cultural ecosystem services of urban green spaces: A case study of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Aleš Smrekar, Jernej Tiran, Katarina Polajnar Horvat — Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0100

This paper analyses the value of cultural ecosystem services in urban green spaces. A field survey of 900 respondents in Ljubljana, Slovenia, examined cultural ecosystem services in seven types of urban green spaces and compared the results with two types of non-green public spaces (old town, shopping mall). Differences between the types were assessed using one-way variance analysis (ANOVA). Results showed statistically significant differences between the types, with sports facilities standing out as valuable for recreation and education. The old town's cultural heritage and aesthetics were highly valued, while shopping malls ranked lowest. The study emphasises the importance of urban green spaces for quality of life of residents and informs land use planning decision-making.