Landscapes Forest and Global Change - ESA - Escola Superior ...

J. Superson et al. 2010. The deforestation of loess uplands of SE Poland and its stages as documented by valley deposits
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covered by multi-species, broad-leaved climax forests consisting of elm, lime, oak, ash and
hazel (Ralska-Jasiewiczowa 1991). A typical community growing in gullies nowadays are Tilio-
Carpinetum forests; tree stands are composed of hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) with an
admixture of small-leaved lime (Tilia cordata), Norway maple (Acer platanoides) and
pedunculate oak (Quercus robur). The Bystra drainage basin has been used for agriculture since
the early Neolithic (Gurba 1960). Prehistoric settlement networks in this meso-region,
reconstructed through archaeological research, rank among the most developed in the Lublin
Upland, in Poland and even in Central Europe.
Based on the available archaeological material, an attempt was made to determine the stages of
the deforestation of the Bystra basin. The intensity of this process in the past may only be
established in qualitative terms and only based on the ascertained or supposed features of
agriculture in individual cultures. More detailed quantitative analyses of changes of forested
areas are only possible for the last 200 years because relatively precise comparative
cartographic material is available for this period. Deposits in the bottom of the Bystra valley
were studied during detailed geomorphological and geological investigations (numerous
drillings), on the basis of which the character and age of the deposits was determined
(radiocarbon dating). The vertical grain-size distribution of mineral deposits and selected
geochemical characteristics (heavy metal content) were also determined.
3. Results and discussion
3.1 Stages of deforestation
The deforestation of the Bystra drainage basin began in the later stage of the Atlantic period of
the Holocene. It was linked with the influx of the early Neolithic people of the Lublin-Volhynia
culture into this area, dated at approximately 3400 BC (Kadrow and Zakoscielna 2000). Those
people cultivated small areas located in the neighbourhood of settlements, i.e. raised terraces
and lower-lying, flattened promontories of the loess plateau adjoining the valley. Deforestations
in that period were linked with a tremendous amount of effort. Since the use of slash-and-burn
methods was limited by the natural humidity of valley bottoms and slopes, mechanical treefelling
methods were used. It can be assumed that the agricultural activity of the Lublin-
Volhynia culture did not cause considerable changes in the landscape of loess promontories.
The deforestation affected small areas in the immediate neighbourhood of settlements.
Approximately 2900 BC, the Funnelbeaker culture people arrived in the Bystra basin. The
economic activity of those people encompassed the entire area of the basin. Vast forest areas
were burnt out, and fallowing was used to a great extent. The extensive use of the slash-andburn
agriculture resulted in an increased area of cultivated land and dispersal of settlements.
Deforestation occurred throughout the Bystra drainage basin, but it was not permanent.
In contrast with the dense Neolithic settlement in the Bystra basin, the settlement process in the
Bronze Age was less intensive and developed in two stages: the early Bronze Age, after 1700
BC (Trzciniec culture), and the late Bronze Age, after 1300 BC (Lusatian culture). A small
number of dispersed settlements developed in a few places on terraces and in the immediate
neighbourhood of the valley bottom. Their economic activity was dominated by animal
husbandry (particularly in the later stage), while farming played a secondary role. Settlement
sites of the Trzciniec culture usually occur in places that were not occupied by previous
Neolithic settlements, which may indicate that the previously used land became overgrown on a
considerable scale (Taras 1995). Areas affected by deforestation were small, but the process
may have been relatively permanent.
In the Early Iron Age (from 650 BC to 400 AD), the loess areas in the Bystra basin remained
beyond the reach of the regular ecumene. Settlement sites are very sparse, located exclusively
along the Bystra river, which is interpreted as proof of a very limited human penetration of the
drainage basin and a migratory nature of settlement (Stasiak-Cyran 2000).
Forest Landscapes and Global Change-New Frontiers in Management, Conservation and Restoration. Proceedings of the IUFRO Landscape Ecology
Working Group International Conference, September 21-27, 2010, Bragança, Portugal. J.C. Azevedo, M. Feliciano, J. Castro & M.A. Pinto (eds.)
2010, Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Bragança, Portugal.