Land availability analysis and social attitude aspects in relation to implementation and development of short' rotation forestry systems in Poland After observations of European development of renewable sources, and according to protocols and directives, set by both European and Polish policy makers, there is a need to find methods to support the future development of Short Rotation Forestry (SRF) using fast-growing trees on agricultural land, and to overcome potential problems. In this paper society attitudes towards future developing options for SRF energy plantations in Poland were investigated. In the investigation, two kinds of questionnaires were presented to various representatives of branches that have a potential interest in the subject. Individual representatives for the groups of industrial and municipal representatives, farmers, researchers and academic teachers, etc. were pooled. The results showed that main difficulties may arise from farmer attitudes towards nontraditional crops. This group of people showed great suspiciousness towards new crops, an attitude, which might be explained in part by the fact that the average level of knowledge concerning SRF energy plantations was low. Another factor that may strongly influence the introduction of SRF plantation is the land availability and suitability. Concerning the relatively large arable lands in Poland in comparison to other European countries the land availability potential has been investigated. On the base of two factors projecting the mentioned aspects of land, the analysis has been performed to figure out regions in Poland with the highest short rotation forestry potential.

The author discusses issues of sustainable development in rural areas in Poland from the perspective of natural resources management. Sustainable development of rural areas is the way of managing which links economic, social and ethical principles with ecological safety. This may be reached by proper management, directed on cautious usage of ecosystems’ self-controlling mechanisms, with the progress of science and technology. Agriculture in Poland is one of the most important sectors from an economic perspective and its importance is greater in Poland than in other countries in the EU. It has an influence not only on the social and economic situation of the rural population, but also on the natural environment, structure of landscape and biodiversity. From ecological point of view, functions of rural areas are not only being a place for production of food, resources for industry and green energy, but also supplying environmental goods such as protection of biodiversity and influencing air and water quality as well as landscape. The author presents ways to reduce the pressure of agricultural activities on water resources in the region, catchment and farm scale

State of rural water resources and selected new challenges of water resources management in rural areas in Poland are presented Problems of influence small water reservoir for water quality is presented. It is commonly believed that every kind of reservoirs should collect and reduce the nutrient contamination (N, P, heavy metals). The presented results show that water reservoirs (both pre- and main reservoirs) are a source of water pollution. The reservoirs fed by waters of inadequate or poor quality are an additional source of contamination, which accelerates the process of eutrophication. However, as the literature shows, well-designed pre-reserviors of optimum size can remarkably reduce the phosphorus import into reservoirs and help to control eutrophication from non-point sources

Green roofs are constructions made of different layers, each serving a dedicated function. Substrates and materials used in their composition are essential from the point of view of rainwater retention and plant development, but they may have an adverse effect on runoff quality. Literature studies show that phosphorus and heavy metals are of main importance. The total roofs area covered with green increased in the last years in cities as they are efficient in retention of rainwater and delaying of the runoff, therefore, protecting the cities against floods. As green roofs filtrate a significant amount of rainwater, materials used in substrates composition should be carefully selected to protect urban receivers against pollution. The aim of this study was to assess phosphorus and heavy metals leaching from different green roof substrates and their components with the focus on green roof runoff quality. Both commercially made green roof substrates and often used compounds (construction aggregates) were tested in laboratory batch tests for P, Cu, Ni, Cd, and Zn content in extracts. Based on the results of this study, it could be emphasized that a large part of commonly used construction aggregates can be a source of phosphorus, some also can release elevated values of nickel. Therefore, the materials should be carefully tested before use in the green roof substrate composition, not only for their physical properties reflecting water retention capacity, but also for chemical composition.