The results of a first systematic study of spatial distribution of different elements in surface soil over of the Kavadarci region, Republic of Macedonia, known for its nickel industrial activity are reported. The investigated region (360 km 2 ) is covered by a sampling grid of 2 9 2 km 2 ; whereas the sampling grid of 1 9 1 km 2 was applied in the urban zone and around the ferronickel smelter plant (117 km 2 ). In total 344 soil samples from 172 locations were collected. At each sampling point soil samples were collected at two depths, topsoil (0-5 cm) and bottom soil (20-30 cm). Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was applied for the determination of 36 elements (Ag,

In this paper, reliable data and information as an important basis for integrated water resources management (IWRM) is discussed. Such data are especially important in transboundary water bodies, as they can represent a common and transparent knowledge-base that all concerned parties can trust and utilise in the management process. The transboundary Lake Macro Prespa (West Balkan) is used as a case study. The lake is rich in biodiversity but threatened by increased eutrophication. The main focus of the monitoring (2007)(2008) was therefore on nutrients and chlorophyll a, as well as oxygen levels, transparency and temperature. The results of the monitoring were used in consultations with water managers and other stakeholders, and the study demonstrated how such data could represent a common and neutral point of departure for discussions across borders on integrated lake management. However, the paper also shows that monitoring may result in inadequate or even erroneous information, thus pointing to the importance of understanding all phases of the practical implementation of harmonised monitoring. The main challenges of the harmonised monitoring included different laboratory methods and performances, as well as a number of practical issues related to logistics and communications across borders. A less ambitious programme during the first year of monitoring (2007) might have saved funds and resulted in more harmonised and reliable data this year. However, in 2008 the project succeeded in producing a set of harmonised data, amongst others by using one common and accredited laboratory for stations in both countries. This paper therefore also presents new monitoring data from this unique large lake, of which there are relatively few published studies. The results of the monitoring give reasons for concern. The eutrophication of the lake seems to be increasing, and this calls for Irrig Drainage Syst (2010) 24:223-238

Land degradation neutrality (LDN) is defined as a "state whereby the amount and quality of land resources nec-essary to support ecosystem functions and services and enhance food security remain stable or increase within specified temporal and spatial scales and ecosystems". The baseline is expressed as the initial (t0) estimated value of each of the three indicators, used as proxies of land-based natural capital and the ecosystem services that flow from that land base: land cover/land use change, land productivity status and trends, soil organic carbon status and trends. The baseline of LDN was calculated with estimation of the average values across the 10 years baseline period of the following indica-tors: Land Cover/Land Cover change (LC/LCC), Land Productivity Dynamics (LPD) and Soil Organic Carbon (SOC). Three tier approaches for computation of the selected indicators were used: Tier 1: Global/regional Earth observation, geospatial information and modelling; Tier 2: National statistics (only for LC/LCC) and Tier 3: Field survey. Most sig-nificant changes in LC for the period 2000/2012 are in the categories of Forest land and Shrubs/grasslands. According the global data sets used for analysis of LPD, the total affected area with depletion of Land productivity for the period 2000/2010 is identified on a only 2.35 % of the country territory. The available global data sets gives a model SOC lev-els for the period 2000/2010. According these data, the total loss of SOC in our country is estimated on 3951 t.

This research studies the copper contents in vineyard soils under vineyards affected by the long-term use of copper-based fungicides and evaluates the extent of this influence on the super accumulation in the main viniculture growing regions in North Macedonia. The soil samples were taken from individual vineyards located in the Tikvesh region, from two depths: 0-30 and 30-60 cm. At the same time, control samples were collected from each of the visited sites. The control samples were taken from untreated nearby locations under natural conditions in order to determine the background concentrations. The available copper (Cu) contents were analysed on soil samples taken from 100 locations, 50 of which represent vineyard soils (organic and conventional farming) and 50 control samples from nearby forests and sites. The main finding is that the average available copper concentrations are significantly higher in soils under vineyards, compared to the background concentration in control samples, especially in these with organic farming where the use of coper-based fungicides is more intensive. A comparison of the copper contents in vineyards to the background concentrations of control samples clearly confirmed the anthropogenic influence. A significantly very high level of copper (10.70-18.77 mg/kg) was measured in the soil samples from organic farming. The control samples contained a significantly lower concentration of copper, between average 1.39- 1.62 mg/kg (0-30 cm) and 0.68-0.88 mg/kg (30-60 cm). According to the micronutrient rating as related to a soil test with the DTPA extraction reagent (Jones, 2001) applied in this study, a significant potential ecological risk has been noticed in the agricultural soil samples (organic and conventional production).