ITRAX Core Scanner Capabilities Combined with Other Geochemical and Radiochemical Techniques to Evaluate Environmental Changes in a Local Catchment, South Sydney, NSW, Australia

Gadd, Patricia; Heijnis, Henk; Chagué‐Goff, Catherine; Zawadzki, Atun; Fierro, Daniela; Atahan, Pia; Croudace, Ian W.; Goralewski, J.

doi:10.1007/978-94-017-9849-5_17

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…We paid particular attention to spores from coprophilous fungi as local markers of past pastoralism, that is, prehistoric livestock presence (Cugny et al, 2010), as well as to micro-charcoal particles to investigate the role of fire in the opening of the formerly densely forested landscape. Furthermore, we considered palaeoecological and archaeological data together with geochemical proxies (X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses) from a parallel fen peat sequence in order to detect changes in the environmental settings in the fen’s catchment (and particularly erosion processes; Gadd et al, 2015) possibly linked to past livestock and anthropogenic activities by Late Neolithic herders. We discuss the potential synchronicity of these changes with general Central European climatic change.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Steady transformation of primeval forest into subalpine pasture during the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age (2300−1700 BC) in the Silvretta Alps, Switzerland

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The question of the origin of Alpine farming and pastoral activities associated with seasonal vertical transhumance and dairy production in the Silvretta Alps (Eastern Switzerland) has recently benefitted from renewed interest. There, pastoral practises began during the Late Neolithic (2300 BC), but alpine dairy farming was directly evidenced so far only since the Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age (1300–500 BC). The vegetation development, timberline shifts at 2280 m a.s.l. and environmental conditions of the subalpine Urschai Valley (Canton of Grisons, Switzerland) were reconstructed for the small (8 m2) Plan da Mattun fen based on palynological and geochemical analyses for the last six millennia. The X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses are among the first ones performed on a European peatland in such altitudes. A high Rb/Sr ratio in the fen peat sediments revealed an increase in catchment erosion during the time when the forests of the Upper Urschai Valley were steadily diminished probably by fire and livestock impact (2300–1700 BC). These landscape openings were paralleled by increasing micro-charcoal influx values, suggesting that prehistoric people actively set fire on purpose. Simultaneously, palynological evidence for pastoralism was revealed, such as pollen from typical herbs indicating livestock trampling, and abundant spores from coprophilous fungi. Since then, vertical transhumance and pastoral activities remained responsible for the open subalpine landscape above 2000 m a.s.l., most probably also in the context of milk and dairy production since 1300 BC, which is characteristic for the European Alps until today.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Steady transformation of primeval forest into subalpine pasture during the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age (2300−1700 BC) in the Silvretta Alps, Switzerland

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Reconciling 22,000 years of landscape openness in a renowned wilderness

Fletcher,

Romano,

Lisé‐Pronovost

et al. 2024

Geographical Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Here, we explore the profound impact of the Tasmanian Aboriginal (Palawa) people on Tasmanian landscapes by examining a 22,000‐year record of landscape change from Lake Selina in western Tasmania, Australia. We analysed a sediment core for palaeoecological proxies, namely, pollen (vegetation), charcoal (fire), and geochemical data (landscape weathering). This study reveals that the contemporary landscape is a product of Palawa people’s intentional and strategic fire management practices characterised by fire‐dependent buttongrass moorland and the absence of climax rainforest. Specifically, our data show that rainforest failed to re‐establish a dominance at Lake Selina following the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, as temperature and moisture increased as a result of Palawa cultural fire for at least 18,000 years. This finding challenges the long‐held notion that Tasmania’s wilderness is a product of the absence of human activity. Rather, archaeological sites across western and central Tasmania demonstrate long term presence, with some of the highest artefact and faunal bone densities in the world. The study contributes to the recognition of Tasmania’s west as a cultural landscape shaped by generations of Aboriginal care for Country and fire practices.

show abstract

Spatio-Temporal Variations in the Geochemistry of Laguna Salada de Chiprana, NE Spain

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Hypersaline lakes are sensitive and increasingly threatened ecological and depositional environments that are host to a diverse spectrum of industrial services, natural resources, and environmental processes. Furthermore, they are also important repositories of high-resolution palaeoenvironmental information and are potentially key archives in the reconstruction of environmental, climatic conditions and past human impacts in areas where other such repositories may not be available. Many saline lakes are threatened by increased farming and irrigation practices and the effects of global warming. Geochemical XRF analyses of a transect of sediment cores from Laguna Salada de Chiprana, a permanent hypersaline lake in the Iberian Peninsula, provide insights into geochemical processes and palaeoenvironmental changes occurring at the site throughout the last 300–400 years. Key changes identified within the sequence are defined both from a spatial and temporal aspect and characterise the profundal and littoral sub-environments of the lake. Initially, the onset of a phase of widespread agriculture and irrigation in the region occurred in the late 16–17th century to ~1850AD and was associated with relative increases in lake levels. This was followed by decreasing lake levels between 1850 and 1950AD, likely associated with increasing evaporative processes and decreased irrigation returns to the lake, which also allowed for increased organic productivity in the profundal setting. This may have been associated with the transition of the site to a wetland-type setting, where biological processes were able to flourish in the shallower central depocentres of the lake. In sequence, the introduction of farm machinery and changing irrigation patterns occurred around 1950, causing small increases in lake levels, colonization by charophytes as well as increased organic productivity in the littoral setting, likely due to the establishment of suitable environments for biological processes to occur in the shallower margins of the lake when water levels rose. From this period to the present day, slow drawdown of the lake has occurred coupled with increasing management of the site by the regional government, leading to several phenomena. Evaporative processes are high throughout the lake; there are falling but highly variable water levels and there is a segmentation of organic productivity, whereby falling lake levels permit increased organic productivity in the profundal setting but decrease productivity in the littoral setting due to the establishment of harsh evaporitic and erosive conditions in this area. The reconstruction reveals the high sensitivity of Lake Chiprana as an environmental archive and illustrates the need to utilise multiple sediment cores for accurate palaeoenvironmental reconstructions of saline lakes due to the strong variability in depositional and geochemical sub-environments.

show abstract

ITRAX Core Scanner Capabilities Combined with Other Geochemical and Radiochemical Techniques to Evaluate Environmental Changes in a Local Catchment, South Sydney, NSW, Australia

Cited by 3 publications

References 16 publications

Steady transformation of primeval forest into subalpine pasture during the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age (2300−1700 BC) in the Silvretta Alps, Switzerland

Steady transformation of primeval forest into subalpine pasture during the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age (2300−1700 BC) in the Silvretta Alps, Switzerland

Reconciling 22,000 years of landscape openness in a renowned wilderness

Spatio-Temporal Variations in the Geochemistry of Laguna Salada de Chiprana, NE Spain

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About