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Societal stability and environmental change: Examining the archaeology-soil erosion paradox

Societal stability and environmental change: Examining the archaeology-soil erosion paradox
Societal stability and environmental change: Examining the archaeology-soil erosion paradox
This paper critically examines the soil exhaustion and societal collapse hypothesis both theoretically and empirically. The persistence of civilizations, especially in the Mediterranean, despite intensive and presumably erosive arable farming creates what is described here as the archaeology soil erosion paradox. This paper examines the data used to estimate past erosion and weathering rates before presenting case studies that engage with the theoretical arguments. Study 1 shows 5000 years of high slope erosion rates with both soil use and agriculture continuously maintained in the catchment. Study 2 shows how ancient agricultural terraces were constructed as part of an integrated agricultural system that fed the ancient city of Stymphalos—now abandoned. Study 3 presents a recent example of how after the removal of terraces high soil erosion rates result during intense rainstorms but that arable agriculture can still be maintained while external costs are borne by other parties. What these case studies have in common is the creation of soil, and increased weathering rates while productivity is maintained due to a combination of soft bedrock and/or agricultural terraces. In societal terms this may not be sustainable but it does not necessarily lead to land abandonment or societal collapse.
0883-6353
23-35
Brown, Tony
c51f9d3e-02b0-47da-a483-41c354e78fab
Walsh, Kevin
31d5d7c1-bda6-4a40-941f-65ca1288a8f5
Brown, Tony
c51f9d3e-02b0-47da-a483-41c354e78fab
Walsh, Kevin
31d5d7c1-bda6-4a40-941f-65ca1288a8f5

Brown, Tony and Walsh, Kevin (2017) Societal stability and environmental change: Examining the archaeology-soil erosion paradox. Geoarchaeology, 32 (1), 23-35. (doi:10.1002/gea.21611).

Record type: Article

Abstract

This paper critically examines the soil exhaustion and societal collapse hypothesis both theoretically and empirically. The persistence of civilizations, especially in the Mediterranean, despite intensive and presumably erosive arable farming creates what is described here as the archaeology soil erosion paradox. This paper examines the data used to estimate past erosion and weathering rates before presenting case studies that engage with the theoretical arguments. Study 1 shows 5000 years of high slope erosion rates with both soil use and agriculture continuously maintained in the catchment. Study 2 shows how ancient agricultural terraces were constructed as part of an integrated agricultural system that fed the ancient city of Stymphalos—now abandoned. Study 3 presents a recent example of how after the removal of terraces high soil erosion rates result during intense rainstorms but that arable agriculture can still be maintained while external costs are borne by other parties. What these case studies have in common is the creation of soil, and increased weathering rates while productivity is maintained due to a combination of soft bedrock and/or agricultural terraces. In societal terms this may not be sustainable but it does not necessarily lead to land abandonment or societal collapse.

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Accepted/In Press date: 2 November 2016
e-pub ahead of print date: 26 December 2016
Published date: January 2017
Organisations: Palaeoenvironment Laboratory (PLUS)

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 405764
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/405764
ISSN: 0883-6353
PURE UUID: 5187d5a5-92ee-46d0-8bb6-51a44493da67
ORCID for Tony Brown: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-1990-4654

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Date deposited: 18 Feb 2017 00:21
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 05:02

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Author: Tony Brown ORCID iD
Author: Kevin Walsh

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