One of the most important and long-lasting research trends in the field of agricultural geography is an attempt at the synthetic approach to the spatial issue of agriculture in various spatial scales (Aitchison 1986/2014, 1992/2014; Bertaglia et al. 2007; Blazy et al. 2009; Carmona et al. 2010; Falkowski, Kostrowicki 2001; Gregor 1970; Grigg 1966, 1969, 1974, 1995; Hudson, White 2007; Iraizoz et al. 2007; Kostrowicki 1968, 1972, 1977, 1991; Kostrowicki, Szyrmer 1990; Köbrich, Rehman et al. 2003; Scott 1983; Singh 1979; Szczęsny 1982, 1988; Tittonell et al. 2010; Tschudi, Johanson 1983; Tyszkiewicz 1982; Whittlesey 1936). The typology and regionalisation of agriculture are the research interest of both agricultural geographers and agricultural economists. Proposed agricultural classifications have greatly contributed to the understanding of agricultural systems functioning in the world and to the development of agricultural geography as a regular science (Aitchison 1986/2014).
Agriculture is a complex system that consists of numerous components closely related to one another. For this reason, various criteria are adopted in the works synthesising spatial systems of agriculture. Falkowski and Kostrowicki (2001) point out that the following conditions are taken into account: 1) natural conditions of agricultural development (for the most part agricultural regions are identified with the areas of similar natural conditions for agricultural development), 2) external conditions of agriculture (mainly natural) and selected features of agriculture, 3) one dominating element of agriculture in a given area (e.g. dominant crop), 4) a selected group of elements of agriculture, prevailing in the studied area, and 5) the synthetic characteristics of agriculture (possibly comprehensive). At the same time many different synthetic concepts are used (including a region, a system, a type) as well as methods enabling a synthetic characterisation of agriculture. The multiplicity of research approaches used in the geography of agriculture makes it difficult to compare the results.
The criteria and methods used in the classification of agricultural systems are subject to a multi-aspect assessment, e.g. Aitchison 1986/2014, 1992/2014, Falkowski and Kostrowicki (2001), Gregor (1970), Grigga (1969), Kostrowicki (1972), Mądry et al. (2011), and Wysocki (2010). An indepth analysis of problems related to the classification of agricultural systems was conducted by Aitchinson (1986/2014, 1992/2014). He distinguished 4 stages of the classification process. The first stage in the process of the classification of agricultural systems is a research context in which the proposed classification is determined. The research context includes description, explanation, methodology, and prescription. The second stage is the “Scale of Analysis” and is related to design. In this stage, we identify taxonomic units (e.g. fields, farms, farmers) and attributes to be used in the classification. The next step is analytical and includes the selection of the classification method. The procedure ends with a step called: “Interpretation and evaluation of typological structures and spatial patterns”. In this step, the typology is evaluated in the context of the adopted research objectives. It should be emphasised that the basic problems of the typology of agriculture are: the availability of statistical data, the selection of diagnostic variables and the selection of methods.
The work carried out by the the International Geographical Union Commission for Agricultural Typology in the 1960s and 1970s under the leadership of J. Kostrowicki was extremely important in the development of the classification of agricultural systems in the geography of agriculture. During that work, a set of conditions which the typology of agriculture should fulfill were defined, and a detailed methodology of typology was also described. This typology should only rely on the internal characteristics of agriculture described by 28 variables. These variables were defined as measures and grouped in four categories: social 1 – percentage of total agricultural land held in common, 2 – percentage of total agricultural land in labour and share tenancy, 3 – percentage of total agricultural land in private ownership, 4 – percentage of total agricultural land operated under collective or state management, 5 – number of active workers per agricultural holding, 6 – area of agricultural land per holding (hectares), 7 – gross agricultural production per agricultural holding. 8 – number of active agricultural workers per 100 ha of agricultural land, 9 – number of draught animals per 100 ha of cultivated land, 10 – number of tractors, harvesters, etc. in terms of total horsepower per 100 ha of cultivated land, 11 – chemical fertilisers: NPK per hectare of cultivated land, 12 – irrigated land as a percentage of total cultivated land, 13 – harvested land as a percentage of all arable land (including fallow), 14 – livestock units per 100 ha of agricultural land. 15 – gross agricultural production per hectare of agricultural land, 16 – gross agricultural production per hectare of cultivated land, 17 – gross agricultural production per active agricultural worker, 18 – gross commercial production per active agricultural worker, 19 – commercial production as a percentage of gross agricultural production, 20 – commercial production per hectare of agricultural land, 21 – degree of specialisation in commercial production. 22 – perennial and semi-perennial crops as a percentage of total agricultural land, 23 – grassland (permanent and temporary) as a percentage of total agricultural land, 24 – food crops as a percentage of total agricultural land, 25 – livestock production as a percentage of gross agricultural production, 26 – commercial livestock production as a percentage of gross commercial production, 27 – gross production of industrial crops as a percentage of total agricultural production, 28 – herbivorous livestock as a percentage total livestock.
In the Polish agricultural geography, intensive research on the typology of agriculture was conducted from the 1960s to the early 1990s. It was carried out at different levels of spatial aggregation: regional, national, and global, as well as taking into account various European countries and regions. (e.g. Bański 1991; Biegajło 1968, 1973; Falkowski 1977; Gałczyńska 1982, 1985; Głębocki 1979, 1986; Kostrowicki 1964, 1970, 1978; Kostrowicki, Szczęsny 1978; Matusik 1973; Stola 1970, 1972, 1974, 1977; Szczęsny 1978, 1981, 1982, 1988; Szyrmer 1984; Tyszkiewicz 1977, 1979, 1982, 1986) The scientific output of the Polish geography of agriculture in the field of the typology of agriculture was comprehensively discussed in the papers: The scientific output of agricultural geography in Poland (2005) and in Falkowski, Kostrowicki (2001).
The last attempt at the typology of agriculture in Poland (at the local level LAU2 – communes) was done by Szczęsny (1988). It concerned the role of individual farming under the planned economy. Later, a synthetic typology of Polish agriculture was abandoned (Bański 2007a), although at the turn of the 21st century Polish agriculture intensively changed as the consequence of: 1) the socio-economic transformation which started in 1989, 2) general transition from a planned economy to a market economy and 3) Poland’s accession in 2004 to the European Union.
In our study, we identified types of agriculture in Poland and, to this purpose, a new method of typology was also proposed. We also identified conditions and factors determining the types of Polish agriculture. Particularly, we paid a special attention to historical conditions.
R. Szczęsny and R. Szczęsny (1996, 81.11), analysing the types of agriculture identified at the end of the 1980s, found that “In 1988 types of agriculture were spatially heterogenous, according to spatial heterogeneity of Polish agriculture at that time.” and “After 70 years of independence and some diverse development within the interwar period and last 45 years, there are still clear borders of the former partitions (1772–1918), where the development of agriculture in the nineteenth century was influenced by other socio-economic systems”. In this paper, we try to verify whether those observations are still valid for the types of Polish agriculture developed at the beginning of 21st century.
The specific spatial distribution of the types distinguished is a result of many factors and determinants (Fig. 1). Kostrowicki (1969) emphasised that every type of agriculture is the result of the interaction of social, technical, economic and cultural processes. These processes are developing at a specific time and place and in specific natural conditions. The most significant among the external factors is the historical one – the fact that for almost 150 years Polish territory was partitioned among three different states: Russia, Prussia and Austria (Fig. 2). Although this situation ended after the First World War, traces of the specific partition can still be observed, especially in rural areas. What also greatly contributed to spatial differences in agriculture were the radical modifications in Poland’s borders after both world wars which brought about deep systemic, social and economic changes. Especially great changes took place after the Second World War. As a result of agreements concluded by three world powers, Poland’s territory shifted westwards as far as the Oder river and its left-bank tributary, the Lusatian Neisse, while in the east its boundaries were set by the longitudinal section of the Bug river. The north-eastern boundary is artificial in nature. In the south, Poland’s territory is closed by the mountain ranges of the Carpathians and the Sudeten, and in the north, by the Baltic Sea (Czapiewska 2003; Głębocki 2007b; Grykień 2005; Jezierski, Leszczyńska 2003; Morawski 2011; Musiał 2012; Olszewski 1985; Sroka 2015; Woś 1998; Stola, Szczęsny 1976).
Fig. 1
Conditions and factors determining the types of agriculture in Poland after 1945.
Source: own elaboration.

Fig. 2
Polish borders in 1772–2018.
Source: own elaboration.

Changes in the borders also caused large-scale migratory movements. Poles who lived in the old eastern borderland until the end of the Second World War were moved to Poland’s new north-western regions left by the displaced German population (Gawryszewski 2005). Rural areas there were usually well-equipped (for those times) with technical infrastructure, but it was often unknown to people arriving from the previous eastern borderland, which caused its rapid depreciation. In an agricultural reform, the state took over all farmland left by the Germans, and people settling in rural areas were given only a limited acreage to organise private farms. Even so, not all land resources were disposed of. On disused land various types of state farms were gradually organised. The years 1949–1956 were a period of intensive collectivisation of Polish agriculture that in fact arrested its development (
The systemic changes introduced in 1989 and the economic restructuring that accompanied them caused Polish agriculture to enter a new development path. At first this development was halted by the opening of boundaries, the transition to a market economy and the liquidation of state farms and some cooperative ones. This brought about an increase in unemployment in areas where they were located. After this stage had ended, with the financial assistance of the European Union countries, the situation in rural areas started to improve gradually. Further beneficial changes took place after Poland’s accession to the EU. The more ample financial means it obtained then greatly contributed to the rapid development of agriculture, thus causing the emergence of new patterns of its types (Głębocki 2006, 2007b, c; Jezierska-Thole, Janzen, Rudnicki 2014; Kłodziński, Wilkin 1999;
It should also be observed that, apart from historical, political, economic and social factors, what greatly influences the formation of the specific types of agriculture and their spatial distribution is natural conditions (
The analysis was carried out on a set of 3,069 spatial units and a large set of variables (69) describing agriculture in Poland. These spatial units correspond to the LAU 2 (NUTS 5) level and are official administrative units in Poland with its own self-government management. The set of variables is a result of Agricultural Census in 2010 and, additional data were obtained from Head Office of Geodesy and Cartography in Warsaw.
Variables can be divided into 5 groups: 1) the land tenure system and the organisation of the production space, 2) labour resources and quality, 3) means of production, 4) natural resources, the structure of crops and animal husbandry, 5) effects of agricultural production (Appendix 1, 2).
Due to the limited volume of the article, only the interpretation possibilities of the research results for the features included in the first group are shown (Table 1).
Land tenure system (2012) and the organisation of the production space (2010).
The typology of agriculture can be identified in many different ways. Usually, a simple cluster analysis is conducted or one of the many classification methods on a large or small dataset describing agriculture in given regions, countries or any other units. However, if we consider agriculture as a phenomena related to human activity, we also should notice its spatial context. The problem is, that the most popular methods are “blind” to the spatial dimension of agriculture. Particularly, methods used in the typology do not take into account the effects like: proximity of spatial units and their agricultural activity, neighbourhood effect or just spatial heterogeneity. As a consequence, a new method is necessary and this method should also measure the influence of spatial effects on the distribution of agriculture types across regions or countries. Especially, spatial dependence is considered as a leading effect that affects the spatial distribution of different types of agriculture.
We developed and implemented a new procedure for a typology of agriculture. It had several steps, and the first one was the identification of spatial dependence in data describing agriculture in spatial units analysed. The next step of the typology was the detection of spatial clusters, i.e. finding groups of spatial units satisfying two kinds of proximity: in the type of agricultural activity and location proximity (understood as “being neighbours in space”). The last step is a final typology of agriculture with the use of classification methods. As it was mentioned above, the typology was conducted on the set of Polish communes as an example.
The spatial dependence is one of the spatial effects and was formally defined by Anselin (1988). This effect assumes that relationships between neighbouring spatial units are much more stronger than between distant ones (Tobler 1970; Kossowski 2018). We can measure how processes or phenomena in one spatial unit influence those in the neighbouring spatial units.
A concept of the spatial weights matrix is the most popular solution for presenting a neighbourhood structure. The most basic spatial weights matrix is a binary and symmetric matrix. We define a weight
The spatial weights matrix presented can be used for a spatial autocorrelation analysis of data. The spatial autocorrelation measure was formulated by Moran (1950) and is widely applied for geographical datasets. Although this measure was defined for a symmetric, binary spatial weights matrix, it is also commonly used for a row standardised spatial weights matrix
Standardised Moran’s
Coming to the second step of our analysis, we have to mention, that Moran’s
For the transformed data related to spatial units, the third step of analysis, i.e. cluster analysis was performed using the
Using the mentioned methodology we conducted a typology of agriculture in Poland. For this purpose, we gathered data on agriculture in Poland which consist of 69 variables. Then, we conducted an analysis of spatial autocorrelation of these variables. All variables had a statistically significant Moran’s
The distinguished types differ in the proportion of variables characterising them, or by their absence. Their spatial distribution is specific. Those found in north-western Poland are more uniform and make up clusters embracing a large number of territorial units. In turn, in the areas that used to be Russian and Austrian partitions the differences in the types are wider; also, the clusters of uniform territorial units that they form are smaller (Fig. 2, 3).
Fig. 3
Types of agriculture in 2010.
Source: own elaboration.

The characterisation of the distinguished types of agriculture was based on a deeper analysis of the average values of variables used in the research. The types were assigned numbers from 1 to 20. While subjective, this numbering also describes them in a way.
Types 1–6 differ in their genesis, spatial distribution, internal organisation, and directions of agricultural production, but they all have a high share of farms owned by natural persons. Those are predominantly commercial farms, hence most of them give work in agriculture as the main source of income.
The national mean being 67.3%. Meadows occupy 30.0% of AL, and pastures 11.9%. Those are the highest figures in the types distinguished (the national means amounting to 17% and 4.2%, respectively). The stocking rate of cattle per 100 ha AL in 2010 was 95.3 head, including 51.8 cows. This is the most important milk-producing region in Poland. This is the highest value of this indicator among all the types distinguished. The national mean equals 22.9%. The national mean being 16.4%.
Their mean size is 13.4 ha AL. The national means being 2% and 1.3%, respectively.
In Poland this term is used with reference to farms owned by individual persons. The indicator is lower only in type 4 (11.8 persons per 100 ha AL).
This is the highest figure in all the types distinguished. The national means for those crops were 20.5% and 9.1%, respectively.
Over 65 years old. The stocking rates of those animals were 53.9, 124.1 and 91.1, respectively, per 100 ha AL.
In 2010 their average size was 6.64 ha AL. The national means being 2.4% and 1.3%, respectively. The national mean being 14.6%.
10.1% of holdings are chiefly involved in commodity production.
In 2010 their average size was 12.96 ha AL. The national mean being 1,000/100 ha AL.
Individually-owned holdings possessed 79.6% of agricultural land. 15.8% of their area was lots performing housing, recreational and service functions. Good soils and areas with favourable sun exposure. 8.6 bee colonies per 100 ha AL, the national average being 3.8 colonies.
Individually-owned farms accounted for more than 85% of AL, while their average size was 6.29 ha AL. They owned 9.3% of agricultural land.
Individually-owned holdings had 77.1% of agricultural land, and housing-recreational lots, 15.1%. Only 8.6% of holdings earmark their production mainly for the market, and over one-fourth (26.5%) exclusively for their own needs.
Those are areas with traditional family divisions of farms.
4,503 hens, the national average being 1,000.
The national mean being 29%.
The national average being 17%.
Apart from this area, this type occurs in a single commune in Lublin region. The national mean being 8.5%. Without oats. 20.9% conduct exclusively commodity production.
In 2010 the national mean was 27.3 persons per 100 ha AL.
The genesis of A military pacification action carried out in south-eastern Poland against the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Action Vistula… 2006, Koprowski 2016, Motyka 2011, Ziemiec 2017).
In these areas, rural settlement developed on forest clearing or outskirts of forest complexes.
In the ownership structure individually-owned farms predominate (70.1%) The average value of this indicator in rural areas was 76.3%, and in cities 62%. In cities, it amounted to 2,300.8 m2 / 100 ha of arable land, and in rural areas – 539.1 m2 / 100 ha of arable land. The cattle density per 100 ha of agriculture land was 15.1, including cows 6.1. Revenue from agriculture 10.5%
The research aimed to find a synthetic approach to the characteristics of agriculture, defined by a large number, high complexity and diversity of its inter-related elements. The intensity of these elements is spatially heterogenous as the result of the impact of various conditions, both local and global. These features of agriculture decided about an attempt to use spatial econometric methods: spatial autocorrelation proposed by Moran (1950), and its extension to the LISA method by Anselin (1995).
These methods, combined with well-known classification methods, were used for the identification of types of agriculture. The attempts at the identification of the types of agriculture made so far have been based on a small number of diagnostic variables. The methods of spatial econometrics and classification applied in this work do not limit the spatial scale and the number of analysed variables. However, the barrier is the availability of a full database of diagnostic variables for all spatial units being analysed. In the authors’ opinion the results achieved with the use of these methods are satisfactory. The main advantage of these methods is that they take into account the occurrence of spatial dependence effects and the similarity of neighbouring areas. This approach, although widely present in many geographic and economic disciplines, has not received yet much attention in spatial research of agriculture.
It is also worth noting that the applied methods make it possible in the final stage of the analysis to group the synthetic indicators obtained for territorial units into sets (types) of varying degrees of similarity. The most optimal was to divide the set of 3,069 territorial units into 20 groups with a high degree of similarity. These groups are called “types”.
The analysis of each of the distinguished types showed their characterological differences, as well as the varied significance of diagnostic variables in their structure. The regional spatial distribution of the identified types is a new approach, which in a synthetic manner confirms the differences in Polish agriculture at the same time taking into account the similarities in neighbouring units.
The conducted analysis revealed that nowadays the most numerous groups among the types (16) identified in Poland are those characterised by an advantage or a large share of private farms (large-scale commercial farming – 5, horticultural farming – 1, medium-scale commercial farming – 4 and semi-subsistance farming – 6). Only three types of agriculture are characterised by large share of big farms representing various forms of ownership (medium-scale and semi-subsistance farming) and one was identified as a type of various genesis (semi-subsistance farming). The conditions of agricultural farming changed at the turn of 21st century, which obviously influenced the shaping of agriculture types. However, as in the last typology made for individual farming at the end of the 1980s, a large spatial diversification of the distinguished types was stated – Polish farming is still very diverse. Moreover, spatial distribution of types still refers to historical determinants as well as natural and socio-economic conditions and local spatial relationships.
Characteristics of identified types and spatial distribution can be of major utilitarian importance for spatial planning authorities creating regional agricultural development. Moreover, the indication of the importance of the analysed diagnostic variables for particular types makes it easier to select the appropriate tools controlling agriculture and to develop a regionally diversified strategy for further development of agriculture.
Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Typological features in 2010.
Land tenure system (2012) and organisation of production space (2010) | Labour resources and quality | Means of production | Natural resources and structure of crops | Proportion and concentration of animal husbandry | Effects of agricultural production |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 – percentage of the Treasury property | 11 – number of working per 100 ha of agricultural land | 21 – number of cereal combine harvesters per 100 ha of agricultural land | 30 – percentage of arable land in agricultural land | 48 – number of horses per 100 ha of agricultural land, | 63 – percentage of farms in which more than 50% of farm income comes from agricultural activity |
2 – percentage of natural persons’ property (farms) | 12 – percentage of people with higher education | 22 – number of potato combine harvesters per 100 ha of agricultural land | 31 – percentage of wasteland in agricultural land | 49 – total number of cattle per 100 ha of agricultural land, | 64 – percentage of farms in which more than 50% of farm income comes from hired labour |
3 – percentage of natural persons’ property (building lots) | 13 – percentage of people with secondary education | 23 – number of beat combine harvesters per 100 ha of agricultural land | 32 – percentage of orchards in agricultural land | 50 – number of cows per 100 ha of agricultural land, | 65 – percentage of farms in which more than 50% of farm income comes from disability and old-age pensions |
4 – percentage of farming cooperatives’ property | 14 – percentage of people with post-primary vocational education | 24 – number of tractors per 100 ha of agricultural land | 33 - percentage of house gardens in agricultural land | 51 – percentage of cows in herd, | 66 – percentage of farms running agricultural activity |
5 – percentage of churches and denominational associations’ property | 15 – percentage of people with no education | 25 – percentage of farms raising cows using churn milking machines | 34 – percentage of meadows in agricultural land | 52 – number of swine per 100 ha of agricultural land, | 67 – percentage of farms not running agricultural activity |
6 – percentage of companies’ property | 16 – mobile age (up to 44 years old) | 26 – percentage of farms raising cows using pipeline milking machines | 35 – percentage of pastures in agricultural land | 53 – total number of poultry per 100 ha of agricultural land, | 68 – percentage of farms in which final production is fully commercial |
7 – percentage of consolidated agricultural land in farms | 17 – mobile age (up to 34 years old) | 27 – percentage of farms raising cows using bucket milk coolers | 36 – percentage of wheat in sown area | 54 – number of hens per 100 ha of agricultural land | 69 – percentage of farms in which final production is destined exclusively for self-supplying farms |
8 – percentage of agricultural land in farms with more than 10 plots | 18 – non-mobile age (45-64 years old) | 28 – percentage of farms raising cows using tank milk coolers, | 37 – percentage of rye in sown area | 55 – number of broilers per 100 ha of agricultural land | |
9 – average area of all farms in ha | 19 – post-working age (over 65), | 29 – use of mineral (artificial) fertilisers NPK in pure component in kg/1 ha of agricultural land | 38 – percentage of barley in sown area | 56 – number of turkeys per 100 ha of agricultural land | |
10 – average area of farms over 1 ha | 20 – percentage of women managing farms | 39 – percentage of triticale in sown area | 57 – number of geese per 100 ha of agricultural land |
Features determining types of agriculture.
No. of type | Land tenure system (2012) and organisation of production space (2010) | Labour resources and quality | Means of production | Resources, crops and husbandry | Effects of agricultural production | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Natural resources and structure of crops | Proportion and concentration of animal husbandry | |||||
1 | 2 | 14, 16, 17 | 26, 28 | 34, 35, 40, 45 | 49, 50, 60 | 63, 66 |
2 | 2 | 13, 14, 16, 17 | 23, 25, 28, 29 | 30, 44, 45 | 49, 50, 52, 60 | 63, 66 |
3 | 9, 10 | 13, 14 | 25, 28, 29 | 30, 38, 39, 42, 44 | 52, 60 | 63 |
4 | 6, 9, 10 | 14 | 26, 28, 29 | 30, 36, 42, 44 | 60 | 63 |
5 | 2 | 14, 16, 17 | 37, 39, 40 | 49, 50 | 63, 66 | |
6 | 7 | 24, | 46, 47 | 68 | ||
7 | 21, 24 | 32, 38 | 51 | |||
8 | 8 | 21, 25, 29 | 30, 38 | 52 | ||
9 | 2, 9 | 16, 17 | 21, 23, 24 | 30, 36, 38, 44 | 66 | |
10 | 2 | 37, 39, 40 | ||||
11 | 15 | 24 | 37, 39 | 58 | 65, 69 | |
12 | 3 | 11, 15, 19, 20 | 24 | 34, 39, 43 | 48, 51 | 65, 67, 69 |
13 | 3 | 11, 20 | 24 | 36 | 51, 58 | 64, 69 |
14 | 3, 7 | 11, 20 | 21, 24 | 38 | 65, 67, 69 | |
15 | 3, 7 | 11, 19, 20, | 24, | 34, 36, 43 | 51 | 65, 69 |
16 | 3 | 11, 15, 19, 20 | 24 | 31, 43 | 65, 67, 69 | |
17 | 1, 6, 9, 10 | 31, 32, 37, 43 | 60 | |||
18 | 1, 6, 8, 10 | 29 | 30, 36, 41, 42 | |||
19 | 1 | 34, 35 | ||||
20 | No significant features in this type |
Effect of Regional Baric Systems on the Occurrence of Bioclimatic Conditions in Poland Effects of Geomorphological Processes and Phytoclimate Conditions Change on Forest Vegetation in the Pomeranian Bay Coastal Zone (Wolin National Park, West Pomerania) Changes of the Surface Area of Morskie Oko and Wielki Staw in the Tatra Mountains Vertical Variability of Night Sky Brightness in Urbanised Areas The Role of Geomorphosites in the Local Economy Development of the Carpathian and Sub-Carpathian Area of Vrancea County, Romania Generative Adversarial Approach to Urban Areas’ NDVI Estimation: A Case Study of Łódź, Poland Cartography and Analysis of the Urban Growth, Case Study: Inter-Communal Grouping of Batna, Algeria Impacts of Land Use Change on Landscape Structure and Ecosystem Services at Local Scale: A Case Study in Central Portugal The Increase in the Proportion of Impervious Surfaces and Changes in Air Temperature, Relative Humidity and Cloud Cover in Poland The Analysis of Fire Hotspot Distribution in Kalimantan and its Relationship With Enso Phases Patterns in the Multiannual Course of Growing Season in Central Europe Since the End of the 19th Century