TYPES AND CHANGES OF SURFACE WETNESS IN THE REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA ACCORDING TO COPERNICUS WATER AND WETNES DATABASE
The paper presents the changes in soil moisture in the Republic of Srpska (RS), which occurred in the period 2015–2018. Also, the distribution of wetlands by natural units and altitude zones is given. The Copernicus Water and Wetness (WaW) database has been used, based on the photointerpretation of satellite images Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2, in resolutions 10 m and 20 m. Wetlands are divided into four categories, based on the registered percentage of water and moisture during the year and seasons: permanent water, intermittent water, permanent wetland and temporary wetland. The results of the research show that temporary and permanent waters occupy 0.48 % of the territory of the RS, permanently wet areas 0.03 %, while the largest territory includes temporarily wet areas which occupy 1.81 % (areas with wetness from 25 % to 75 %). The two largest areas where humidity occurs, and which differ in geographical position and origin of humidity, are: Posavina and Semberija in the north and medium and high karst fields in the south, in the region of Herzegovina. Changes in soil moisture registered in the period 2015–2018 are primarily of anthropogenic origin and relate to the drainage of wetlands and ponds. The most famous case is the Bardača reserve, where most of the former 11 fishponds have been turned into agricultural land over the last decade. There has not been any long-term monitoring of soil moisture at the entire territory of the RS, so the main contribution of this paper can be seen in that aspect.