Abstract
Sustainable Land Use Optimization in Radioactively Contaminated Landscapes of Ukrainian Polissia
Dr. Iryna McDonald1, Dr. Liudmyla Raichuk2
1Fort Hays State University, Department of Agriculture, Hays, KS, USA
2Institute of Agroecology and Environmental Management of the NAAS, Kyiv, Ukraine
Abstract
The radioecological situation in territories contaminated due to the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident remains challenging, particularly in the Zhytomyr, Kyiv, and Rivne regions, where certain products continue to exhibit elevated levels of radionuclide content. Contemporary challenges – such as the full-scale war, which has led to the loss of productive lands in southern and eastern Ukraine, and climate change, manifested through rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and intensified erosion processes – underscore the urgent need to fully reintegrate radioactively contaminated territories into agricultural production to ensure the country’s food security. The objective of this study is to develop theoretically grounded and practically feasible recommendations for optimizing land use in radioactively contaminated areas of Ukrainian Polissia, based on an adaptive-landscape farming system and a scenario-based approach to agricultural activities, taking into account current ecological, climatic, and socio-economic challenges. The study employed methods of scenario modeling, multi-criteria analysis, spatial modeling, expert ranking, systems analysis, and geospatial modeling. Five model scenarios for agricultural activities were developed: “Current Practice” (crop-based), “Dairy Farming” (crop-livestock), “Bioenergy” (livestock-crop), “Beef Farming,” and “Intensive Beef Farming” (livestock-based), considering the level of 137Cs contamination, soil types, climate change, war-related impacts, and the requirements of the European Green Deal. Comparative analysis based on criteria of economic efficiency, ecological safety, social acceptability, adaptability to climate change, and compliance with international standards demonstrated the highest effectiveness of the adaptive-landscape farming system for Polissia conditions. The proposed classification of lands by the level of radioactive contamination enables a differentiated approach to their use, ranging from cultivation of all regionally adapted crops to afforestation and phytoremediation. The integration of scenarios with the adaptive landscape system reduces radionuclide accumulation in products by 2-3 times through the selection of crops and crop rotations, restores the fertility of sod-podzolic soils, and enhances economic profitability. The study’s findings can be utilized to develop national strategies for reintegrating contaminated lands into agricultural production, establishing incentive mechanisms, and ensuring Ukraine’s food security.
Department/Program
Agriculture
Submission Type
in-person poster
Date
4-13-2026
Rights
Copyright the Author(s)
Recommended Citation
McDonald, Iryna and Raichuk, Liudmyla
(2026)
"Sustainable Land Use Optimization in Radioactively Contaminated Landscapes of Ukrainian Polissia,"
SACAD: Scholarly Activities: Vol. 2026, Article 80.
Available at:
https://scholars.fhsu.edu/sacad/vol2026/iss2026/80
Included in
Agriculture Commons, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons
