STATUS EVALUATION OF THE STATE DEFENSIVE FOREST IN THE STAVROPOL TERRITORY

Abstract

This study is aimed at evaluating the condition of the branch of the state defensive forest “Cherkessk – Elista – Volgograd” within the Stavropol Territory. The state forest belt plays an important role in maintaining agroforestry landscapes and protecting soils from deflation and erosion. The analysis used Earth remote sensing data (RS) with multispectral images from Sentinel 2A/2B satellites, which make it possible to evaluate the vegetation health using the NDVI vegetation index. The results showed that 32% of the area of the state defensive forest is dying or has been lost completely. The lowest preservation rates were recorded in the Apanasenkovsky and Turkmensky districts, where 70% and 54% of the forest planting was destroyed, respectively. At the same time, the best characteristics were observed in the Aleksandrovsky and Petrovsky districts with 90 and 85% of the preserved area. The dynamics of NDVI values indicate an overall deterioration of the forest belt, particularly in the northern regions of the Territory. This highlights the need for developing restoration and maintenance measures for the state forest belt, especially in the context of adapting to changing climatic conditions. The use of modern technologies, such as remote sensing data and GIS-technologies, has enabled expeditious evaluation of the condition of the forest planting.