The Republic of Macedonia covers an area of 25.713km2
. From its entire territory, 5.065km2
are flat, 7.599km2 are hillsides and 12.255 km2 are mountainous areas. About 1700 settlements
existed on the entire territory up to the 70s of the 20 century. All of them covered certain territory
(on average about 15km2 per settlement). The land was used for different purposes (agriculture,
gardening, orchards, vineyards etc.), and it is classified by cadastral cultures (fields, rice fields,
orchards, intensive orchards, vineyards, intensive vineyards, meadows, pastures, forests, swamps
and wetlands and infertile or barren land). Great changes have occurred with the displacement of
the population during the processes of industrialization and urbanization. About 150 settlements
are totally resettled, and in another 500 the population (from the average 400 inhabitants per
settlement) was reduced to barely 50 or fewer inhabitants. This process caused great changes in
the transformation of the lands of cadastral cultures in the Republic of Macedonia. The objective
of this research study is to more concretely and more accurately recognize the geographical,
ecological and economic consequences in the area of the Republic of Macedonia.