ASSESSMENT OF NATURAL MOISTURE CONDITIONS ON THE EXAMPLE OF THE SOUTHWESTERN PART OF KYIV REGION

The sustainability of agriculture in Ukraine directly depends on the level of natural soil moisture supply, which is significantly deteriorating under the influence of climate change. The article investigates the impact of these changes on the value of potential evapotranspiration (ETo) in the southwestern part of the Kyiv region (Central Forest-Steppe of Ukraine) based on the data from the Bila Tserkva weather station for the period from 1991 to 2020. The research methodology is based on the assumption that the assessment of the impact of climate change on the state of natural moisture supply can be performed provided that climate change itself is assessed according to the long-term dynamics of air temperature and precipitation in the period from 1991 to 2021 with the values of the same indicators in the period from 1961 to 1990 - the climatic norm. The potential evapotranspiration (ETo) was chosen as the criteria for assessing the impact of climate change on the state of soil moisture supply. The assessment results showed that the annual value of potential ETo increased by 9%, which may indirectly indicate a deterioration in the conditions of natural soil moisture supply. This has important implications for agriculture, as an increase in ET can lead to a decrease in available moisture for plants, which will negatively affect crop yields. The study covers changes in average annual and average monthly air temperature, as well as precipitation by season and month. It has been established that over the past thirty years, Ukraine has been experiencing a deterioration in moisture conditions, which requires the adaptation of agricultural practices. Sustainable development of the agricultural sector is possible only if changes in the natural moisture supply are taken into account when developing management models and cultivation technologies. The results obtained indicate the need to introduce innovative agronomic technologies that adapt to current climate change.