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ISSN 2070-7401 (Print), ISSN 2411-0280 (Online)
Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa
CURRENT PROBLEMS IN REMOTE SENSING OF THE EARTH FROM SPACE

  

Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2026. Т. 23. № 3. С. 195-209

Changes in forest cover parameters in the south of Central Russian Upland in recent decades

E.A. Terekhin 1 
1 Belgorod State National Research University, Belgorod, Russia
Accepted: 10.03.2026
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2026-23-3-195-209
Changes in forested land indicators in the southern Central Russian Upland have been studied from the mid-1980s to the early third decade of the 21st century. Changes in the age of largest broadleaf forests in the region were analyzed. The forest cover has increased from 17.3 to 21.3% during the study period. During the same time, the average distance between the nearest forest areas has halved and their number has increased by 62%. The greatest increase in forest cover relative to the initial level occurred in test plots with the lowest initial forest cover. A significant forest cover increase occurred both in the typical and southern forest-steppe physical-geographical subzones. The region’s forest cover shows a trend towards formation of numerous young forests in areas previously not covered by forest vegetation. At the same time, there was a reduction in the proportion of young forests in existing forest areas. The simultaneous occurrence of these processes, with the first one predominating, led to an increase in the total extent of forests younger than 30–40 years in the study plots. The share of young forests in the test plots increased from 19.8 to 20.6%. At the same time, the total area of such forests increased by more than 29%. In the region’s largest forest areas, there was a reduction in the extent of forests younger than 20 years. The share of young forests in the largest broadleaf forests of the southern Central Russian Upland decreased from 14 to 5% from the mid-1980s to the early 2020s.
Keywords: forest cover, forest age, long-term changes, remote sensing data, Belgorod Region
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