The doctoral dissertation focuses on the role of part-time farms in the economic, environmental and spatial transformation of the urban fringe. On the basis of the sample of Slovene suburban farms, the impact level of the proximity of workplaces on the mobility of the agricultural workforce can be determined. It can also be determined if socio-economic characteristics of suburban agricultural economies reflect in the characteristics of farm management and in the environment. This consequently stresses the role of part-time farms in the strengthening of multi-layered agriculture.
From the perspective of spatial planning, it is important to learn about the development potential of farms in the planned area and to put greater emphasis on the most vital and stable farms, whether they be pure farms or part-time farms. As an answer to the question in what way should the development potential of farms in the selected area within the acceptable temporal and financial scope be evaluated, a methodology for evaluating the development potential of suburban farms from the perspective of socio-economic and spatial conditions was formed. The evaluation was divided into four segments: the evaluation of the stability and vitality of farms; the evaluation of the expansion potential and the conflict potential among farms; the evaluation of the quality and structure of agricultural land; and the evaluation of the impacts of spatial planning and protective measures on the development potential of farms. The methodology may be employed for the evaluation of all socio-economic farm types. It was tested on the case of sample farms on the Kamniška Bistrica plain
The end of the dissertation offers suggestions for spatial site selection of farms and agricultural activities in urban settlements or other planned areas. These suggestions comprise some hypothetical examples of site selection of farms in the environment to guarantee a more efficient performance of farms and only minimal conflicts with the rest of the population.
|
