Geospatial Transformations of Land Cover Use in the Peri-Urban Zone of Belgrade: The Case of the Municipality of Grocka

Ljiljana Mihajlović, Miroljub Milinčić, Danijela Vukoičić, Dragan Petrović

Abstract


Peri-urban zones are characterized by intensive spatial and functional transformations driven by the interplay of urban expansion, agricultural restructuring, and landscape change. As part of Belgrade’s peri-urban belt, the Municipality of Grocka has undergone pronounced land-cover transformations, particularly along major transport corridors and in settlements with strong functional links to the metropolitan core. This study analyzes land-cover change in 1990–2018 using CORINE Land Cover (CLC) data and GIS-based spatial analysis, with emphasis on agricultural-to-built-up conversions and structural shifts within agricultural categories. The results indicate a decline of cultivated land and complex cultivation mosaics, alongside a continuous increase in residential and industrial/commercial land, reflecting sustained peri-urbanization pressures. To capture post-2018 spatial patterns, the long-term CLC assessment is complemented by a Sentinel-2–based 10 m land cover dataset (Esri / Impact Observatory), derived from Copernicus imagery for 2018 and 2024, used strictly as a supplementary snapshot of recent dynamics and internal heterogeneity rather than as a direct extension of the CLC time series. The findings highlight the complexity of peri-urban land-cover transformations and underscore the need for integrated spatial planning and agricultural land protection measures that balance development pressures with the preservation of productive land and landscape functions.

Keywords: land cover change, peri-urban zone, remote sensing data, geospatial analysis, Municipality of Grocka

© 2026 Serbian Geographical Society, Belgrade, Serbia.

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Serbia.


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