Geospatial Features of Historical-Geographical Formation and the Current State of the Forest Massifs of Busk Forestry (Ukraine)

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to investigate the species composition, age structure, and economic utilization of forest plantations in the Busk forestry. The practical importance of such research increases in the context of administrative reform and land resource management in newly created communities and announced consolidations of forestry enterprises in 2021. The research used various time-based cartographic materials, which allowed to trace the development of typical forest massifs from the end of the 18th century to the present day. The study was conducted for four time periods. The proposed study was carried out by processing statistical materials of the Busk forestry. Based on this data, cartographic schemes of species composition, age structure, and timber stock were constructed and analyzed by forestry. It was established that the characteristic features of forestry in the region are: uneven forest cover of the studied territory; significant fragmentation of the forest fund in the southern part of the forestry territory; location of large forest massifs in the northwestern part of the forestry; dominance of such tree species as pine, oak, and alder in the forest stands; insignificant increase in forest cover in individual territories due to the creation of pine tree cultures on unproductive lands and active expansion of black alder forests in over-moistened pastures. The division of the forest fund into categories has been studied. It has been established that the largest share of the forest fund of the Busk forestry is occupied by exploitable forests. Protective forests account for 1.5% of the total forest area in the studied region. The forest supply per capita in the Krasne territorial community is on average 0.12 ha/person, while in Busk it is 0.61 ha/person.