Land Cover, Landscape Change

The Balaton region, Hungary’s most important recreational landscape, has faced growing pressure from vineyard abandonment and shoreline urbanization since 1990, threatening both its traditional character and ecological balance. This study examines land-use change between 1990 and 2018 and assesses the effectiveness of the 2000 Balaton Law, finding that vineyard areas declined substantially despite restrictive regulations, especially in high-pressure locations near the lake and tourist centers. The results show that existing controls were not precise or strong enough to prevent conversion of traditional cultivated land, highlighting the need for more targeted, enforceable regulation and better alignment of protected vineyard zones with active land use.