DOI: 10.21120/LE/10/3-4/16 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231

TRANSFORMATION OF LAND USE PATTERN IN THE EAST BORSOD COAL BASIN FROM THE BEGINNING OF MINING INDUSTRY TO THE POLITICAL CHANGES LÁSZLÓ SÜTŐ1* – ERIKA HOMOKI2 – ZOLTÁN DOBÁNY3 – PÉTER RÓZSA4 1 Eszterházy Károly University, Department of Environmental Geography and Geoinformatics, H-3300 Eger Eszterházy tér 1. P.O.B. 43. 2University of Nyíregyháza, Institute of Teacher Training, H-4400 Nyíregyháza, Sóstói út 31/b. 3 University of Nyíregyháza, Institute of Tourism and Geography, H-4400 Nyíregyháza, Sóstói út 31/b. 4 University of Debrecen, Department of Mineralogy and Geology, H-4032 Hungary Debrecen, Egyetem tér 1. P.O.B. 9. *E-mail: [email protected]

Received 02 August 2016, accepted in revised form 18 September 2016

Abstract Historical geographic studies on land cover may support the understanding of the recent state. Focusing on coal mining, this process was followed and analyzed in the case of the East Borsod Coal Basin from the early 20th century to the political change. The contemporaneous maps and manuscripts concerning the mining were evaluated using geoinformatic techniques. More- over, digitalized topographic map coming from the early and late period of mining (1924 and 1989, respectively) were analyzed. To determine the degree of human disturbance hemerobic of the three military surveys, too. It can be stated that montanogenic subtype of an industrial- relations and changes of the given land cover patches were quantified on the basis of the maps surfaces, however, relative dominance of forest forming the matrix of the landscape remained. agricultural landscape has been formed in the Bükkhát area. Beside the concentrated artificial Keywords: coal mining, historical land cover, Borsod Coal Basin, hemeroby

1. Introduction 2000). Special attention must be paid to Because of practical mitigation of damages, century (Nir 1981; Erdősi 1987; Hooke study of land forming role of deep mining has the environmental impacts of mining on a long history. Size and scale of geomorphic historicalErdősi’s scale publications and used since historical he records, studied process were estimated in the mining too. Moreover, methods of Dobány (2010), districts of England as early as the 15th which were used to reveal the connection century (Somosvári 1989; Botkin – Keller between land cover and social-economic 1995). However, more or less comprehensive relations, could be adopted as well. descriptions of the environmental impacts Our research project on landforming became usual from the middle of the last impact of coal mining in the Borsod Basin 224 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 belongs to these studies. Coal mining here began in the late 18th century, and it was the other map sheets used in this research were most intense in the period ranging from the intersectedAD; II.: 1857-1858 using AD;GeoMedia III.: 1883 5.2 AD) software. and the early 20th In this way, after required corrections, the number of changes in land use types in the natural environment century to the also middle happened of the 1970s;in this patches of the main land use categories was interval.the most significant transformation of the revealed.

2. Materials and Methods 3. Results and discussion Since its national importance, history The hills of Bükkhát microregion form of coal mining in the Borsod Basin has the southern part of the East Borsod Coal been compiled in several studies. The most Basin the geological and geomorphological detailed manuscripts were compiled by the mining engineer Lajos Ürmössy (BSzT, 1960), (2000). The land composed of Miocene which have been completed with further shallowdevelopment marine of whichnearshore was givencoal bybearing Sütő volumes from the 1960s (BSzT, 1994). sediments divided into asymmetric Data, photocopies, maps, and historical catchment areas by the Sajó River and its descriptions concerning coal mining coming tributaries has been formed by landslides from records in the Archives of the University and derasion processes. These determined of Miskolc were also used. The GIS database fundamentally the spreading of man in the was created using the software Geomedia 5.2. hills the early phase of which associated with Moreover, the stereographic topographic the initial periods of mining was discussed by map with the scale of 1:25000, which was compiled in 1928 and the data of which Period of the most intense transformation isSütő recorded – Homoki by (2009).the sheets mapped in 1924. digitalized. The different patch types were Based on background information concerning categorizedwere corrected on thein a basis field ofwork the inCorine 1924, Land was the mining, more complex relationships can Cover System taking the historical land cover be recognized. Considering the Borsod Coal system of Nagy (2009) into consideration. Basin 1.8 million tons of coal were produced in 1923 (BSzt 1960) that made it the largest 1) those which concern mining (waste dumps, coal mining district of Hungary at that time. miningFrom the site, category open ofpit, ’Artificial etc.) were surface’ separated. (level Since production increased over time land The landscape after the most intense period use changes also appeared differentiated of coal mining activity was characterized along the exposed coal beds. Although the on the basis of the digitalized military map size of the settlements moderately increased, sheets of Gauss-Krüger system with the scale however, settled terrains can be already of 1:25000 which were compiled in 1989. changes happened in the valley of the comparative analysis of relationship between found in each valley. The most significant longBecause distance of the changes 75-year andinterval mining, we focusedonly. on because of the considerable immigration due To evaluate landscape disturbance the toBán the Brook running-in and environs of coal mining. of Diósgyőr Adits townwere method of Varga and Németh (Margóczi generally drifted at the exposed coal bed 1998) for evaluating vegetation from natural of the valley sides which are the site of the protection point of view as well as the complex settlements, too. In these areas only 34% of landscape ecological evaluation of Csorba forest and 11% of grassland were indicated by even the third military survey; at the intensity of anthropogenic impacts, sheets same time total ratio of plough (40%) as well (1997) were also considered. Analyzing the as vineyards and horticultural areas (3%) of the three military mapping (I.: 1783-1784 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 225 approached the extension of the semi-natural two and half times higher. The relatively areas. acknowledged vineyards in the environs of Because of the economic value of the coal, any land use was ceased in the case of either. opening a mine. However, the existing land DiósgyőrOn the have basis not of regained land use their data, importance, landscape use was considered when a miner colony was transformation was delayed almost half established. If it was economically reasonable century compared to land use changes as the living space expanded at the expense of a result of more intense land utilization the forested area. From landscape ecological elsewhere in the country (Szegedi 2002). In 1924 the number of patch types was 25 (Fig. 2.). Itpoint is particularly of view the 74.8unfavorable km long that mine in tramway shorter orrepresents longer distance a new, the artificial tramway type runs boundary. on the remnants of the ecologically vulnerable wetlandsvalley floor; (marshes, consequently, wet meadows, it dissected gallery the forests). Regarding land use, it was also unfavorable that the industrial expansion coincided with the phylloxera epidemic of the 1880s. In this area ratio of viniculture fell down to one tenth of the extension prior to the epidemic (Figs. 1. and 2.). In the greater Fig. 1. Ratios of different land use categories in catchment areas devastation could be even 1924 and 1989

Fig. 2. Land cover in the Bükkhát area in 1924 (source: HKÁT stereographical topographic maps 1928) 226 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 Stability of semi-natural land uses could too, which cannot be traced in the land use decrease in the areas wedged in cultivated pattern. lands. It is interesting that human activity did The map of 1989 contains most of the 36 Corine categories in the coal basin. every case. For example the formation of the From a landscape ecological point of view, Bánnot fit Valley for the corridor natural runningremained of uniform;the valleys the in unfavorable new types of patches belonging inner valley of the Tardona Brook remained forested except for the estuary and mountain urban terrains built-in with multi-storey front. houses,to the category technical of ’Artificialstructures surface’ and areheaps the Relationship between geographic (except of waste dumps). Lakes in the open endowments, mining and land cover can pits, however, can be regarded as favorable. be best demonstrated in the case of the The highest patch density values can be found at the meeting of orchards, open built- brooks in their vicinity (Fig. 2.). The upper up areas and the former mining properties partcatchment of the ofvalley Harica-Nyögő of Harica Brookbrooks is and a hardly other (Lyukóbánya, Pereces, catchment area of the disturbed forested area. From the estuary of Alacska Brook, southern part of Kazincbarcika, and environs of Sajószentpéter). were scattered – thanks to a complex geology In spite of the fact that mining is an –the therefore Nyögő Brook,anthropogenic however, land mining use expanded activities eminent landscape forming activity, it in a wide zone from Sajószentpéter toward the enables the forests to survive in the Bükkhát Bükk Mountains along the complete length of area as a whole. Although building of mining structures and timber demand of mining led Brook the dissected steep slopes on the right to deforestation of certain areas, however, sidethe brook. did notAlong provide the lower enough sections cultivatable of Nyögő other types of land use were restricted for land for the population of the settlements; protecting the mining claim. Partly it resulted therefore, cultivation expanded on the left in that the forested area began to increase side of the neighbouring Bábony Brook which again by 1989 (114 km2) exceeding its had been undisturbed. Woodland remnants extension of 1924 (Fig. 3.). It is noteworthy between the mining sites and villages may from landscape ecological point of view have remained in connection with the inner that the ratio of the original matrix of the part of the Bükk Mts. A process similar to this landscape is 40%, i.e. it has preserved relative can be detected in its initial stage in the inner dominancy (Fig. 1.), although its present ecological value is lower than that of the the Harica Brook via which the forest in the original one. The most favorable reforestation Tardonapart of theValley Harica-Nyögő might be in catchmentconnection alongwith can be found in the catchment area of the the inner part of the Bükk Mts. This can be 2), while the explained by that the development of mining at Sajókazinc is still in its initial phase. But theHarica-Nyögő catchment brooksof the Bábony (+7.4 km Brook (-10%). this forest is partly isolated from the forest Themost deforested significant area deforestation has been happenedoccupied by in matrix due to extending cultivated lands ploughs and industrial plants. Some parts between the villages. This fact resulted in of the ploughs have been uncultivated. The the special situation that patch density on lowest ratio of the forests can be found in the the left side of the Harica and right side of alluvium of the Sajó River, however, due to the Bábony valleys is one third of the more economic importance of the valley, this area cultivated opposite sides. In spite of the fact was deforested as early as the end of the 19th that the extension of mining increased, the century. impact of agriculture on the landscape was Simultaneously to the prosperity of coal locally resulted in environmental impacts, more significant (Fig. 1). However, mining mining, agricultural production significantly Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 227

Fig. 3. Land cover in the Bükkhát area in 1989 (source: MH Gauss-Krüger topographic maps, 1:25000) (Settlement and Industrial area contain the Artificial surfaces; the mining object contains dumps, (lake in) open pits, claim). decreased. Area of ploughs is not more and hay-making were replaced by weedy than half of the area of forests, and area of marshlands desiccating every summer. cultivated lands decreased by 8-22% almost The former ecological corridors are almost in every catchment area. On the one hand, entirely affected by human impact because an extended area was withdrawn from of increasing area of the roads running cultivation because of industrial investments, on the alluvium, expansion of motored on the other hand, transformation of human transportation, and building up the former activity led to decrease in the number orchards. of agricultural workers. Because of the Analysis of the changes in the ratio of decrease of cultivated lands, concentration of some branches and land use categories task. In some areas abandonment of can be noticed, e.g. combination of gardens, cultivationsemi-arid grasslandsresulted in isthe the increase most of difficult ratios vineyards and ploughs. As a consequence, of biologically more active surface covers. extension of pure orchards and vineyard Because of anthropogenic impacts, succession reduced to two third and one sixth, of plough – grassland – forest has stagnated respectively. generally at the level of degenerated shrubby The most important change is the dramatic grasslands. Meadows, however, may play decrease in the ratio of natural grasslands important ecologic role since they are wedged and soft-wood galleries (Fig. 1). Wetlands in ploughs, making in this way the migration located in the inner tributary valleys are of species towards the forest possible. only small, isolated patch-fragments. The Degenerated associations expand along the former natural grasslands used for pasturing former industrial railways, too. Consequently, 228 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 from geological and geomorphological usually refer to vegetation characterized by fundamentals was also ignored. thepatches dominance of ’plough, of disturbance-suffering degraded grassland’ and The approximately 4 km2 of mining generalist species. Increase of grasslands properties and landforms is the remnant in the place of abandoned mine properties created during prosperous period of mining may come from former ploughs which may activity. The partly abandoned mining improve naturalness degree of land cover. properties, entrances of adits and shifts, and heaps are determinant factors of the environments (settlements, industrial areas, miningTo ourobjects time etc.) metahemerobic were also formed artificial(Fig. 1.). prevent agricultural activity and expansion of The present average size of the settlements settlements.landscape. The Where artificially they presented dissected direct terrains risk is twice higher than in 1924, and three times to human activity planned landscaping was performed but elsewhere natural processes military survey. Moreover, nowadays, much form the land even today. Moreover, indirect higher than it was at the time of the first processes (landslides, water and air pollution, the covered surface has been multiplied, too. damage in vegetation and built environment, Similarly,more artificial overburden material coming is used, from and expansion area of etc.) are added to the mountainous impacts; of living- and weekend-houses in the gardens located in the former open space of the Bükkhát. slopes represents increased environmental totalAccording area of tothe the affected patch change land is map 27% it canof the be risk source. It is particularly risky in the stated that the original land use has survived undermined suburban terrains, e.g. in the margin of Miskolc and Kazincbarcika, (Fig. 4.). In spite of intense mining activity, where instability of the slopes originating thealmost results in onesuggest third stability of the of area the (32.7%)forests;

Fig. 4. The patch of land cover change map in the Bükkhát area Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 229 20% of the Bükkhát forest cover indicates number of patches increased by one and a half no changes. From a landscape ecological times, however, due to anthropogenic activity point of view this fact is quite favorable in of lower intensity, weighted areal average of hemeroby values of the categories suggests military survey map and map of 1989 shows that naturalness degree is slightly higher than continuityan industrial for zone.68% of Transection the forested of area, the i.e. first a the limit of the degraded state (hemeroby level: 2.99). Up till now the number of patches planted. Considering only the ratio of forested increased by one and a half times, again. areassignificant it seems part to of be the acceptable, forests is however, secondarily the Changes in average hemeroby value does ratio of forests of lower ecological value may be high. The primary land use structure is indicated by the fact that tilling of plough has polyhemerobic)not seem to be patches significant increased (2.83), however,(Fig. 5.). remained in 8% of the area. In almost half of Theratio most of degraded favorable processes and artificial are obviously (meta- and in the ploughs this land use can be found even association with the extension of industrial- now, i.e. if there was any change at all, the mining activity and the increase of inhabited suitable terrains were cultivated again. The areas. most frequent change is resulted by building- up of grasslands, vineyards and ploughs. 4. Conclusions Decrease of the area of natural grasslands is due to tilling of ploughs (more than 25%), but Mining and landscape historical forestation represents similar effect; role of mining is much lower. Nowadays, almost 50% period of transformation of the hilly area to of the lands of complex cultivation structure ainformation cultural landscape suggest thatwas the mostturn of significant the 20th located in the vicinity of the settlements century when, due to the formation of large- are inhabited area. One of the most various scale mining, this agricultural landscape transformations happened in the site of the transformed to an agricultural-industrial former vineyards. They were mainly replaced one. Map compiled in 1924 indicated mining by forest, but ploughs, building-up areas and of local impact, but concentrations of human orchards were also formed. activities resulting in high disturbance can Until the beginning of the 20th century the

be also identified. Although, the increase of

Fig. 5. Areal ratios of patches of different hemeroby values in 1883; 1924 and 1989 230 Landscape & Environment 10 (3-4) 2016. 223-231 ploughs can also be noticed, only indirectly has not regained its former importance and due to the increase of population generated self-supporting role in the environments by mining and industry. overloaded by mining. However, forests Growth of coal production promoted remained dominant land use category, and further industrial investments, resulting in this fact makes the formation of a semi- natural landscape possible. the formation of an industrial-agricultural landscape as early as the mid 20th century, which can be called as montanogenic subtype Acknowledgements by reasons of its features. One of its most Research work of László Sütő was supported by typical characters is the rapid development the European Union and the State of Hungary, of the built-up area, and almost every form co-financed by the European Social Fund in the framework of TÁMOP-4.2.4.A/ 2-11/1-2012-0001 of which can be associated with the mining ‘National Excellence Program’. The authors also activity. Little villages were replaced by new thank the support of the Hungarian National Scientific Research Fund (OTKA Grant No. 101787). covered surface. Mining dramatically transformedtype towns and the industrial topography plants and of artificiallydisturbed 5. References the hydrological systems, and in this way new landscape elements were created and Botkin, D.B. – Keller, A.E. (1995): Environmental semi-anthropic processes were induced. Science: Earth as a Living Planet. – New York, John Wilkes and Sons. pp. 158-159., 321-323. 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