Sigulda district

Sigulda local municipality, located in Central part of Latvia, ca. 60 km from capital Riga (total area of
360,9 km2; ca. 17 800 inhabitants; c. 35% of non-used agriculture land).

In Sigulda municipality low agricultural activity is mostly related to urbanisation process – most of rural
inhabitants that live close to largest cities, choose better paid jobs in the cities, as well as lot of land has been bought up before the crises for transformation into building plots and now are abandoned.

Ludza district

Ludza local municipality, located in at Eastern border of Latvia (total are 966 km2; ca. 15 600
inhabitants; ca. 30 % of non-used agriculture land).

in Ludza municipality typical process of marginalisation can be observed, when due to high
rate of unemployment in the rural areas people are moving out to bigger cities or are emigrating
outside of country. Large part of the non-used agriculture land, that has been abandoned in 1990s,
have already overgrown by shrubs and trees, reaching up to 10 m height and forming dense stands,
thus preventing landowners from returning to agricultural practice.