Erosion control in Prehispanic agrarian landscapes from Northwestern Argentina: El Alto-Ancasti Highlands case study (Catamarca, Argentina)

Abstract

Recent research in the El Alto-Ancasti Highlands (Northwestern Argentina) has identified an extensive agricultural system distributed in between residential sites. This agricultural system seems to have been vulnerable to a gullying system that caused erosion and soil surface loss. The existence of check dams along the inside of these gullies places the beginning of this erosion process at least during its Prehispanic occupation, between 600 and 1000 AD when the agricultural system was active. Here, we characterise the Prehispanic construction of the agricultural landscape, its impact on soil formation and the interaction established by Prehispanic farmers in the area with the local erosive dynamics along the eastern frontier of Northwestern Argentina. Our study indicates the need to pursue further research into runoff agriculture in these environments and its potential contribution for the mitigation of long-term erosive processes and risks, as well as elucidating strategies towards sustainable soil management by modern-day local communities.