The past...plowed: impact of agriculture over the archaeological heritage in the southern piedmont area of Tucumán province (Argentina)

Abstract

This paper investigates the degree of impact of the untimely advancing agriculture frontier has had on the archaeological heritage in lowlands of the province of Tucuman, with the emphasis on the southern portion of the piedmont area. It aproach the issue by integrating data from recent surveys the literature review of topics related to the development of modern agriculture. Starting from this it describes the main mechanisms of alteration produced by agricultural activities on the archaeological remains and the impact of environmental factors in this destructive process. It also analyzes the magnitude of this impact in historical perspective and refl ect on the diffi cult situation between agricultural progress and the preservation of archaeological sites today. We conclude that agricultural activities are the main cause of disturbance of archaeological heritage in the lowlands Tucumán, affecting it in multiple ways. The magnitude of this impact has been increasing for over a century, a fact that raises the implementation of urgent measures to mitigate this situation, some of which are proposed here.