The influence of man on nature can be positive: the example of the Indians

People began to have a significant impact on the environment thousands of years ago. With the increase in the number of people on Earth, this influence only began to increase. Usually, a person has a negative impact on nature: burns forests, drains rivers, changes the balance in ecosystems, and transforms the landscape of the area where he lives.

But there are exceptions. Andrew Trant, a scientist from the University of Waterloo, believes that the Indians of North America gradually improved the nature of the regions where they lived. Specialists from the Hakai Institute and the Victorian University also took part in this study. Scientists studied the history of the development of ecosystems in the region, linking this information with data from archaeological research.

The study took place in several regions of North America. Scientists have discovered 15 ancient sites of Indians in Calvert and the Hecate Islands. For the search, scientists used various technologies, including archaeological methods, studying the landscape, comparing the vegetation of a number of regions. This allowed us to find ancient sites for waste (garbage heaps), the difference in pH and the chemical composition of the soil.
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Indians lived on the coast and islands of North America for thousands of years. All this time they interacted with the environment. And this influence was in most cases positive. For example, the trees near the stands of the Indians, where they lived for a long time, were higher than the trees of the same species in places where people did not live. In addition, these trees were healthier.

"It is incredible to realize that in our time, when most studies show the negative influence of man on nature, the reverse effect is also open," says Andrew Trant. “These forests flourished thanks to the Indians living on the coast. For more than 13,000 years, the people who lived here, and these are 500 generations, gradually changed the local landscape and nature. Therefore, when we look at the terrain, which at first glance seems wild, we need to understand that this is the result of human influence. ”

The Indians who lived on the coast and islands, fed on fish and mollusks . They threw food waste in specially designated places. As a result, organic remains thrown away by them over the past 6000 years are buried underground, occupying territories of thousands of square meters. The thickness of such ancient garbage heaps reaches in some places five meters. Thanks to the waste of the Indians, the plants received the nutrients necessary for life. In particular, it concerns calcium, which plants were obtained from shells eaten by Indians mollusks.



According to research participants, similar results are likely to be obtained when studying coastal areas in other places - not necessarily only in North America.

“This data changes our perception of time and the impact on the environment,” said Andrew Trante. "We will conduct additional research in order to ascertain the scope of the changes."

As for the settlement of America by the Indians, then, according to new data, the first settlers came to America about 23 thousand years ago. It happened during the last ice age. A number of scientists believe that the first people initially remained in the north, and only 13 thousand years ago began the separation of the northern and southern populations. 5.5 thousand years ago, the Inuit and Eskimo fell on the continent.

Unfortunately, finding out the exact picture of the settlement and linking it with the time scale is not possible due to the lack of sufficient evidence of early periods of human existence in America. Most of the archaeological finds belong to the Clovis culture . Evidence of the existence of representatives of this culture are found throughout North and Central America.