Chapter 2. State of the Caucasus Environment and Policy Measures: a retrospective from 1972 to 2002

2.2 Land Resources

Agricultural Land Use. The total land area of the Caucasus consists of 44,019,400 ha. Agriculture is a major land use in the Caucasus, amounting to about 54% of total land area. The majority of such lands are located in plain areas. These lands produce almost the entire agricultural output in the Caucasus. The shortage of agricultural lands is particularly acute in mountainous regions.

The largest agricultural areas are spread in the Kuban-Azov plain, Stavropol plateau in the North Caucasus, and in the Alazani-Agrichay Valley and Lenkoran lowland in the South Caucasus. There, more than 80% of lands are cultivated. Large agricultural areas are also located in other parts of the Caucasus such as the Kura-Araks lowland, Caspian coastline, the Ararat Valley, Colchian lowlands and foothills of the Greater and Lesser Caucasus.

Most of arable lands in the Caucasus are located in the Kuban-Azov plain, the Stavropol Plateau in the North Caucasus, and the Kura-Araks lowland and the Ararat Valley in the South Caucasus.

Traditionally, cultivation of cereals, fodder, fruit, tea, tobacco production and vegetable gardening were major agricultural sectors. Perennial crops occupied the large areas in the South Caucasus: Colchian foothill, Shida Kartli Plain, Alazani-Agrichay Valley, Lenkoran lowland and Ararat Valley.

Historically, summer pastures were located in high mountains of the Greater and the Lesser Caucasus and winter pastures mostly in plains of East Caucasus: the Terek-Kuma plain and the Kura-Araks lowland.

In the 1970s and 80s, highly subsidised large-scale collective farms, either for livestock raising or land cultivation, produced the total agricultural output. Increased productivity was achieved by the use of huge quantities of foodstuff for livestock raising, and the intensive use of fertilisers and other agricultural chemicals for crop production.

Since the break-up of the Soviet Union, land use, agricultural production and trade patterns have dramatically changed in the Caucasus region, as in other FSU regions. The breakdown of traditional economic ties  among the Soviet republics caused the loss of markets for both agricultural inputs (chemicals, food grain for livestock, fuel, machinery and spare parts) and outputs, leading to reduced amounts of arable lands and livestock and hence, a general fall in agricultural output. Large-scale collective farms were no longer sustainable and began to disappear. Individual farmers gradually became the main producers of agriculture output, changing land uses, agriculture practices and adapting to local markets. The natural (subsistence) economy has become stronger in agriculture and brought about increased grazing and hay production. In the South Caucasus countries, almost all collective livestock farms have stopped functioning. This had a detrimental effect on pastures near villages, promoting erosion and land degradation of lowlands (IUCN, 2001). It is worth noting that publicly owned large-scale farms have proven to be more long lasting in some North Caucasus republics (Dagestan, etc.) compared to the South Caucasus, where the land privatisation process has fostered the establishment of private enterprises and small farms.

Urban Land Use. In the Caucasus, urban land development is not the major land uses. Urban territories occupy small areas in the region. Major concentrations are the Baku-Sumgayit agglomeration and along the Black Sea coastline from Sochi to Tuapse, where urban areas vary from 10 to 25% of total landscape areas. Urban territories also are Yerevan, Ganja, Tbilisi-Rustavi agglomeration, Kutaisi-Zestaphoni agglomeration, Nalchik, Vladikavkaz, Grozny and Makhachkala and Derbend.

Historically, many environmental problems of the 1970s-80s in urban areas were related to poor town planning/town-building and land zoning system. Environmental considerations were largely neglected during the planning and construction processes. An even less controlled situation exists now. Illegal construction of residential blocks and commercial buildings, even in green zones, are not rare in the cities.

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