Climate change and the loss of organic archaeological deposits in the Arctic
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Climate change and the loss of organic archaeological deposits in the Arctic. / Hollesen, Jørgen; Matthiesen, Henning; Møller, Anders Bjørn; Westergaard-Nielsen, Andreas; Elberling, Bo.
In: Scientific Reports, Vol. 6, 28690 , 2016.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Climate change and the loss of organic archaeological deposits in the Arctic
AU - Hollesen, Jørgen
AU - Matthiesen, Henning
AU - Møller, Anders Bjørn
AU - Westergaard-Nielsen, Andreas
AU - Elberling, Bo
N1 - CENPERMOA[2016]
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average with overlooked consequences for thepreservation of the rich cultural and environmental records that have been stored for millennia inarchaeological deposits. In this article, we investigate the oxic degradation of different types oforganic archaeological deposits located in different climatic zones in West and South Greenland. Therate of degradation is investigated based on measurements of O2 consumption, CO2 production andheat production at different temperatures and water contents. Overall, there is good consistencybetween the three methods. However, at one site the, O2 consumption is markedly higher than theCO2 production, highlighting the importance of combining several measures when assessing thevulnerability of organic deposits. The archaeological deposits are highly vulnerable to degradationregardless of age, depositional and environmental conditions. Degradation rates of the deposits aremore sensitive to increasing temperatures than natural soils and the process is accompanied by a highmicrobial heat production that correlates significantly with their total carbon content. We conclude thatorganic archaeology in the Arctic is facing a critical challenge that requires international action.
AB - The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average with overlooked consequences for thepreservation of the rich cultural and environmental records that have been stored for millennia inarchaeological deposits. In this article, we investigate the oxic degradation of different types oforganic archaeological deposits located in different climatic zones in West and South Greenland. Therate of degradation is investigated based on measurements of O2 consumption, CO2 production andheat production at different temperatures and water contents. Overall, there is good consistencybetween the three methods. However, at one site the, O2 consumption is markedly higher than theCO2 production, highlighting the importance of combining several measures when assessing thevulnerability of organic deposits. The archaeological deposits are highly vulnerable to degradationregardless of age, depositional and environmental conditions. Degradation rates of the deposits aremore sensitive to increasing temperatures than natural soils and the process is accompanied by a highmicrobial heat production that correlates significantly with their total carbon content. We conclude thatorganic archaeology in the Arctic is facing a critical challenge that requires international action.
U2 - 10.1038/srep28690
DO - 10.1038/srep28690
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 27356878
VL - 6
JO - Scientific Reports
JF - Scientific Reports
SN - 2045-2322
M1 - 28690
ER -
ID: 167182423