LAND DEGRADATION IN KOSOVO

Besides other environmental problems, a particular concern in Kosovo has been created by the fast and uncontrolled degradation of land, first of all agricultural land. The purpose of this paper is to analyze this phenomenon and present the driving factors and different environmental and social problems it has caused, by using maps and documents of different periods of time. The construction sector, first of all housing, is one of the most problematic sectors in this aspect. One of the most intensive construction sides with residential houses in an area of expansion of the Mitrovica city has been taken as a case study. During a period of 11 years (2001-2012) 252 individual houses or other annexes were built within an area of 68.2 ha of agricultural land. Besides the use of an effective surface of 22.5 ha of land for construction, the remaining area is fragmented and has lost its value to use for agricultural purposes. The results show that such a development of settlements with individual residential buildings and no urban planning has caused significant loss of the most valuable areas of land and that this trend is continuing. Unfortunately, this case can be taken as representative sample for the whole Kosovo, especially in the nonurban areas.