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Modal Split in Major Czech Cities: Thorough Analysis and Proposal of Policies Leading to Less Car-Dependent Urban Mobility
Bystřický, Vojtěch ; Ščasný, Milan (advisor) ; Šťastná, Lenka (referee)
This thesis focuses on examining the modal split in the five largest Czech cities. Using data from the first nationwide survey on travel behavior in the Czech Republic called Česko v pohybu, the author identifies the main factors which influence the mode choice of inhabitants of Czech cities. The data were evaluated using multinomial logistic regression. Since modal split studies of a large extent are mostly conducted in Western Europe, the United States or Asia-Pacific region, the main contribution of this thesis is to shed some light also on the travel behavior in the Central Europe, more precisely in the largest cities of the Czech Republic. The author analyzes the impact of socio-demographic variables, such as the respondents' age, education level or household income, as well as the importance of the variables related to the trip, such as trip purpose or trip distance. Further, the author also provides comparison of the travel behavior between the examined cities. Among other findings, the author finds that the entitlement to discounted public transport coupons through the ownership of a discount card does not have a significant effect on the probability of using public transport. Further, the results also show that higher education level does not lead to greater use of ecologically friendly...
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Bird conservation status along a successional gradient in abandoned military areas
Bystřický, Václav ; Reif, Jiří (advisor) ; Hořák, David (referee)
Populations of open habitat bird species has significantly decreased in the Czech Republic during the last decades due to a number of negative factors, such as urbanization and intensification of agriculture. Due to the deterioration of the quality of these biotopes, a number of bird species (not only those of conservation importance) were forced to look for remaining fragments of favorable habitats, which are, for example, abandoned military training areas. The attractiveness of these territories lies primarily in their former closure for military purposes, which has protected these areas against these negative factors. In addition, army's activities created a heterogeneous landscape characterized by a mosaic of biotopes in different stages of vegetation succession - from bare ground, through grasslands, sparse scrubland, dense scrubland to the forest. However, the significance of abandoned military training areas for birds requires deeper investigation. The main goal of this thesis was to describe conservation importance of bird communities in individual biotopes along the successional gradient, for which a survey of 42 abandoned military training areas was used. The results of my work show that the most declining, endangered and protected species of birds sought out early successional habitats...
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Factors affecting farmland bird abundance in different European regions
Bystřický, Václav ; Reif, Jiří (advisor) ; Hořák, David (referee)
Farmland is a very important habitat for many open-habitat bird species. It serves as a food source as well as a breeding and wintering ground. In recent years, however, there has been evidence of population decline in some of these species. This decline is caused by various factors linked to human activities. The aim of this work is to summarise these negative factors and create a comprehensive overview of farmland bird populations status in different parts of Europe. I found that in comparison with other parts of Europe, a much more significant population decline of farmland birds occurs in western and northwestern Europe, mainly due to more intensively cultivated landscapes over the last decades. Central and Eastern European countries are less affected as they show lower intensity of land use associated with numerous small farms as well as the cultivation of spring cereals. In contrast, the abandonment of farmland may be one of the most threatening factors for the whole Mediterranean region. From the perspective of biodiversity conservation, one of the possible solutions could be a lower application of different types of pesticides, cultivation of various kinds of crops or longer- lasting stubble fields. Key words: farmland, birds, biodiversity, population decline, Europe
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A methodology for assessing the impact of cattle grazing on soil properties, water quality and quantity, plant and invertebrates diversity
Fučík, P. ; Zemek, František ; Hakrová, P. ; Svobodová, M. ; Zajíček, A. ; Šlachta, M. ; Pikl, Miroslav ; Duffková, R. ; Mrkvička, J. ; Bystřický, V. ; Procházka, J. ; Skalický, M. ; Holubík, O. ; Moravcová, J. ; Novotný, Jan ; Skalická, J. ; Peterková, J. ; Musil, M. ; Šantrůček, J. ; Matoušková, V. ; Brom, J. ; Hanuš, Jan ; Novotná, K. ; Huislová, P.
This methodology introduces the approaches for assessment of soil, water, plant, forage and invertebrates characteristics of pastures as influenced by cattle grazing. These parameters are necessary to observe and evaluate in order to set the optimal grazing management of pastures for support of the sustainable land use and for mitigating the negative impacts of agriculture on the environment. Moreover, the proper management of pastures enables to improve livestock welfare, market challenges of foods, and strenghten and diversify various activities in rural areas. For the assessment of grazing-induced changes of aforementioned parameters, the focus is oriented towards different pasture geomorphological / hillslope zones, where grazing may exhibit in a distinct manner. The approaches are postponed based on literature survey as well as on knowledge acquired during a multi-branch research project. The methodology shows the principles for monitoring and evaluation of parameters regarding soil physics and chemistry, water quality and quantity, plant diversity and forage quality and ecology of selected invertebrate species. Beside this, approaches for application and interpretation of remote sensing methods and tools for detecting the changes in plant and soil pasture characteristics are introduced and discussed. The methodics is targeted on one hand for specialist from state administration offices (Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of the Environment) as a background for evaluation of the effectiveness of subsidy programmes focused on grazing management. On the other hand, the approaches described in the methodics can serve the experts for an integrated assessment of grazing management on various pasture parameters or on the environment. The novelty of the methodics lies in the multi-level approach, which enables to assess the pasture parameters both individually or jointly, according to their mutual interrelatons and possible driving factors.
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