IMPLEMENTATION OF THE «GREAT PLAN FOR THE TRANSFORMATION OF NATURE» (1948–1953) IN THE ZAPORIZHZHIA REGION: IDEAS, PRACTICES, ACHIEVEMENTS AND FAILURES

Abstract

This article, based on the updating and analysis of information from documentary sources of the mid-20th century, reveals the processes that took place in the Zaporizhzhia region during the implementation of the «Great Plan for the Transformation of Nature» (1948–1953). Comprehensive coverage of the scientific topic made it possible to comprehend the problematic issues that did not allow the Soviet government to implement its plans for a radical change in the landscape environment, climate, and all aspects of life of the population of Southern Ukraine. It was demonstrated how the detachment of the party leadership from the real life of ordinary workers of forestry, collective farms, and state farms of the region, their failure to take into account modern scientific developments in steppe afforestation, did not allow local Soviet functionaries to implement ambitious tasks in a short period of time to correct the climate and the composition of technical and agricultural plants in the steppe zone.