Dynamic changes in land use, many of which are related to land abandonment, are taking place in many regions of the world. As a result, forest vegetation appears, which in part is a consequence of planned afforestation programs and in part has the characteristics of secondary forest succession. Monitoring of forest structure allows the range and dynamics of such changes to be identified. The aim of the study was to assess the usefulness of historical aerial photographs in the determination of forest structure. On the basis of such data, a point cloud was created which represented the forest structure in 1966. Subsequently, using airborne laser scanning data for the same area, corresponding datasets describing the situation in 2012 were created. Comparison of the two tall vegetation models made it possible to perform four analyses related to forest structure changes over a period of 46 years. The analyses were carried out in four areas in southern Poland. The analysis of the results confirmed that historical aerial photographs may be a valuable source in long-term analyses of changes in the range and height structure of areas containing tall vegetation.

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Land consolidation is a process consisting in the designation of new cadastral plots with a differ- ent shape compared to the original ones, in order to reduce the number of small and scattered plots of land that make up a farm, and to increase the average size of homesteads. Within the scope of a land consolidation project, works related to post-consolidation land development are also carried out, which mainly include the creation of a functional network of access roads to agricultural and forest land, and the implementation of tasks, which impact the regulation of hydrographic conditions within the area covered by the consolidation, and which affect land reclamation. Having understood the opportunities as well as threats related to the construction of the high- way, the Self-government of the Małopolska region (Małopolskie Voivodship) initiated activities related to the implementation of the first infrastructural consolidations in Poland in relation to the proposed highway-adjoining areas. On September 21, 2005, an agreement was signed with the General Directorate for National Roads and Highways in Warsaw [Generalna Dyrekcja Dróg Krajowych i Autostrad w Warszawie], pertaining to cooperation regarding the consolidation of land related to the Kraków-Tarnów section of the A4 highway, currently under construction. Infrastructural consolidation, otherwise known as highway-related land consolidation, is a pro- cedure that consists in ordering the space adjacent to the highway construction area, as well as to another investment project in linear form. The purpose of the present article is to investigate the effectiveness of land consolidation works in connection with the construction of the highway, as il- lustrated with the example of a part of the village of Bielcza, in Borzęcin municipality, Brest district.