Environmental changes in Lebanon during the Holocene: Man vs. climate impacts

Pollen and archaeological studies were undertaken in the Southern Bekaa Valley (Lebanon, Mediterranean region). Two Holocene records retrieved in the Aammiq and Chamsine/Anjar wetlands, respectively located at the foothills of Mount Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountain, in the Southern Bekaa Valley, we...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of arid environments 2010-07, Vol.74 (7), p.746-755
Main Authors: Hajar, L., Haïdar-Boustani, M., Khater, C., Cheddadi, R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
anthropogenic activities
climatic factors
Deforestation
environmental impact
Environmental Sciences
Global Changes
history
Human impact
landscapes
Levant
Neolithic sites
Olea
paleobotany
paleoecology
palynology
Pollen
wetlands
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Summary:Pollen and archaeological studies were undertaken in the Southern Bekaa Valley (Lebanon, Mediterranean region). Two Holocene records retrieved in the Aammiq and Chamsine/Anjar wetlands, respectively located at the foothills of Mount Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountain, in the Southern Bekaa Valley, were analyzed to highlight climatic vs. anthropogenic influence on landscape patterns. Our data records support hypothesis on climatically driven modification during the Late Glacial Age and the early Holocene. Human disturbances in the study area are only depicted after c. 8 ky cal. BP, with different patterns in eastern and western parts of the Southern Bekaa Valley. These modifications are in line with major landscape changes in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Since c. 8 ky cal. BP, major deforestation events on Mount Lebanon are recorded in the Aammiq area depicting human interference, while in Chamsine/Anjar, no sign of such activities can be interpolated since strong deciduous oak development is recorded. Archaeological records from the same region confirm human impact on the forest during the Neolithic period. Numerous bifacial flint tools, such as axes, adzes, and chisels, manufactured in the prehistoric workshops of the Southern Bekaa Valley, attest to the beginning of the deforestation during this period. From c. 3.5 to c. 2 ky cal. BP, deforestation seems reduced on Mount Lebanon while in the Chamsine/Anjar area oak forest expansion is still recorded. During the same period, grazing activities were performed in the Bekaa Valley. Between c. 2 and c. 1 ky cal. BP, and on both sites, deforestation and grazing practices are inferred from pollen records. No cultivated plants are recorded in this region. In this view, these Holocene data illustrate important differences in patterns of human activity in comparison with other areas located in the Eastern Mediterranean, where cultivated olive trees and forests decline are well identified. From c. 1 ky cal. BP into the modern period, increasing human perturbations affected the pollen record on both sites.
ISSN:0140-1963
1095-922X
DOI:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2008.11.002