Soil erosion in relation to land-use changes in the sediments of Amik Lake near Antioch antique city during the last 4 kyr

Abstract

The Amik Basin in the Eastern Mediterranean region occupied since 6000-7000 BC has sustained a highly variable anthropic pressure culminating during the late Roman Period when the Antioch city reached its golden age. The present 6-m-long sedimentary record of the Amik Lake occupying the central part of the Basin constrains major paleoenvironmental changes over the past 4000 years using multi-proxy analyses (grain size, magnetic susceptibility, and x-ray fluorescence (XRF) geochemistry). An age model is provided by combining short-lived radionuclides with radiocarbon dating. A lake/marsh prevailed during the last 4 kyr with a level increase at the beginning of the Roman Period possibly related to optimum climatic condition and water channeling. The Bronze/Iron Ages are characterized by a strong terrigenous input linked to deforestation, exploitation of mineral resources, and the beginning of upland cultivation. The Bronze/Iron Age transition marked by the collapse of the Hittite Empire is clearly documented. Erosion continued during the Roman Period and nearly stopped during the early Islamic Period in conjunction with a decreasing population and soil depletion on the calcareous highland. The soil-stripped limestone outcrops triggered an increase in CaO in the lake water and a general decrease in ZrO 2 released in the landscape that lasts until the present day. During the Islamic Period, pastoralism on the highland sustained continued soil erosion of the ophiolitic Amanus Mountains. The Modern Period is characterized by a higher pressure particularly on the Amanus Mountains linked to deforestation, road construction, ore exploitation, and drying of the lake for agriculture practices.

A 2600-year high-resolution climate record from Lake Trichonida (SW Greece)

“…The TOC/TN ratio was calculated to indicate the origin of the sedimentary organic matter. While values for in-lake organic matter, such as algae, are low, generally ranging between 4 and 10, mixed provenance is indicated by a ratio of 10 to 20; values higher than 20 indicate that land-plant organic matter was eroded into the lake (Meyers, 2003).…”

“…Human impact, e.g. by deforestation, is also known to increase erosion and detrital material input (Meriam et al, 2018). However, one would expect longer-lasting periods, while these facies units lasted a maximum of 100 years.…”

Effects of historical land-use change in the Mediterranean environment

“…Throughout the final Chalcolithic/early-Bronze Age and with the onset of the late-Holocene, a transition from climate-to human-dominated landscapes occurred (Balbo et al, 2018;Picornell-Gelabert and Carrion-Marco, 2017;Mensing et al, 2015;). This transition is likely to have been triggered by an enlarged LUC capacity aimed at adapting to the contemporary drier and warmer climate, further exacerbating aridification (El Ouahabi et al, 2018;Mazzini et al, 2016;Pustovoytov and Riehl, 2016). During that time, more complex adaptation measures were developed, such as storage systems, enlarged infrastructures, and extended trading networks, which raised pressures to the natural system (Fontana et al, 2017;Clarke et al, 2016;Flohr et al, 2016;Gogou et al, 2016;Morellón et al, 2016;Weiberg et al, 2016).…”

Identification of Economic Activity in a Bronze Age Settlement in Central Russia Based on the Results of XRF Analysis of Samples of the Cultural Layer

“…To provide a comprehensive overview on this matter, works on physical-chemical identification and explorations of cultural layers of ancient settlements can present a great interest. Some studies show that the chemical elements contained in cultural layers of settlements, soil layers of zones of economic development and soil layers of the territories of ancient industries prove to be an informative source of the types of economic activity that existed in them [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. In the Bronze Age settlements in central Russia, such work potentially allows to record traces of various types of economic activity and to distinguish different functional zones in the investigated territory, all through the utilization of geo-chemical markers, i.e., the chemical elements contained in the cultural layer.…”