RURAL AREA TRANSFORMATION: FROM CROPLAND TO MINE FIELDS – ZEMUNIK DONJI MUNICIPALITY (CROATIA) CASE STUDY

Abstract

This paper analyses socio-economic and land use changesin the Zemunik Donji Municipality of the Republic ofCroatia during the 19th and 20th centuries. It also providesan overview of the current suspected landmine areas andcivilian casualties in this region and the influence oflandmines on population numbers. The Zemunik DonjiMunicipality is an integral part of Ravni kotari, oneof the most important agricultural regions in CoastalCroatia. Throughout history, people living in this regionwere mostly engaged in agriculture (both cropping andpastoral activities), through which they achieved prosperity.In spite of extensive processes of depopulation andabandonment of cultivated land during the secondhalf of the 20th century in this and other parts of CoastalCroatia, the landscape of the Zemunik area has retainedthe characteristics of an agricultural region. As a resultof the recent Croatian War of Independence, considerablechange has occurred within the Municipality withabandonment of agricultural land, and fertile fieldsbecoming landmine fields to pose a major obstacle toeconomic activity.