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Challenges of Soil Resource Protection: A Case Study from Sitnica River Basin (Kosovo)
 
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University of Pristina, Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Department of Geography, Eqrem Çabej str, no 51, 10 000 Pristina, Kosovo
 
 
Publication date: 2019-06-01
 
 
Corresponding author
Ibrahim Ramadani   

University of Pristina, Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Department of Geography, Eqrem Çabej str, no 51, 10 000 Pristina, Kosovo
 
 
J. Ecol. Eng. 2019; 20(6):215-224
 
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ABSTRACT
Soil resources in Kosovo are facing challenges due to different human activities. Urbanization along with economic growth has further worsened the shortage of soil resources in Kosovo. In the last 20 years Kosovo has undergone some social, political and economical changes which have made the population to migrate toward plains, where new settlements are formed, and the others are extended. Soil resources are an important resource for Kosovo’s inhabitants which are mainly focused on agriculture. Most of the Kosovo’s terrain is mountainous, which means nearly half of the area is not suitable for agriculture. Sitnica River basin lies mostly in Kosovo Plain where soils are characterized by high soil fertility with a great potential for agricultural development. The vicinity parts of the river basin lies in the hilly mountainous areas where soils have low fertility. Good natural conditions has made the River Basin to most densely populated area in Kosovo. Rapid extension of urban and rural settlements has made changes in land cover; agricultural lands are excluded from primary use, and agricultural capacity is reduced with increasing of settlements in lands with high quality. Sitnica River basin was faced with uncontrolled urbanization, followed by degradation of agricultural lands and land use changes, where in some cases floods are caused or the flood’s risk is increased. In this case study, Sitnica River basin will be analysed based on terrain morphology, soil and other natural resources, land use changes and will be a contribution towards sustainable urbanization of settlements in order to preserve soil resources. Keywords: soil resources, land use, degradation, zoning, urbanization, sustainable development, Sitnica River basin.
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