Geoinformation analysis of the state of agricultural land in southern Iraq

The current state of agricultural lands is considered on the basis of geoinformation analysis of their spatial location in the southern part of the interfluve of the Tigris and Euphrates (Republic of Iraq) and their cartographic assessment is presented. The subject of the study, the agricultural landscapes of the southern part of the interfluve of the Tigris and Euphrates, are the standards characteristic of floodplain ecosystems. The results obtained using computer mapping and analysis of the state of agricultural lands can be used to form an ecological framework of sustainable landscapes, as well as to identify and map degradation processes in landscapes of analogues. The main results of the research are the development of a local geoinformation system (GIS) based on modern computer technologies and the creation of thematic electronic maps of agricultural landscapes, characterized by multidimensional mapping of the thematic situation. As a result of the work, the spatial characteristics and structure of the relief were determined, thematic mapping of the state of the components of agricultural landscapes using GIS technologies and space-time analysis of satellite images was carried out. Thus, geoinformation studies of the southern part of the interfluve of the Tigris and Euphrates made it possible to establish the spatial characteristics of the relief, the area of cultivated land, to identify the actual use of land for agricultural production. It has been established that almost everywhere in the studied agricultural landscapes there is an overgrowth of abandoned, uncultivated fields with semi-shrubs and herbaceous plants. It is noted that the main factor of degradation of agricultural lands in the studied territory of the Iraqi Republic is salinization, which is associated with the widespread use of irrigation systems, which negatively affects the state of soil and vegetation cover, leads to deterioration of climatic and microclimatic indicators in agricultural landscapes.