Deforestation in Roman times
The deforestation in Roman times was a result of Ausgreifens of the Roman Empire and the consequent population growth , the intensive farming and unprecedented economic development . The Roman period marks the transition of the Mediterranean from prehistory (from around 1000 BC) to the historical period from around 500 BC. While around 8000 years ago only a few million individuals had populated the earth, which was largely untouched, the general upswing in the expansion phase of the Roman Empire saw extensive deforestation in the Mediterranean countries.
causes
House building
The basic source for house building in ancient times was wood. While many of the outer walls were made of brick and stone , wood was often used for roof trusses and their covering. In its heyday, the Roman Empire was estimated to be around 60 million people, around a million of whom were in the capital, a magnitude that was not reached again until modern London in the 19th century. This population explosion, coupled with a lavish lifestyle in the metropolises of the empire, intensified the use of resources considerably.
fuel
Wood was the basic heating material of the Roman world and was needed in large quantities for the already existing industry . Around 90 percent of the material that was burned was wood, which resulted in great demand for this raw material. It was especially needed in mines, smelting and ceramic production. These industries caused high levels of air pollution due to the constant burning, not least with heavy metals. Wood and charcoal were also the basic heating material in Roman households and baths . Forest areas around centers of mining were first cleared. After all the resources in the immediate vicinity of the industries had been used up, the wood was imported by sea and land. After a certain period of time, the production centers were relocated to other areas of the Roman Empire in order to maintain the cycle of production and resource consumption and to be able to supply the steadily growing population.
Agriculture
Agriculture was the economic basis of the Roman Empire. Therefore, land reclamation for crops should be seen as a primary factor in deforestation. In the process, manpower was gradually displaced by iron plows pulled by workhorses. The latifundia of the classical period, farmed by slaves, were the backbone of the Roman food industry. In a 111 BC Roman law published in BC was explicitly allowed to keep public land in possession of it, provided that it was used for agricultural purposes. The scale of agriculture makes it clear that it was not only produced for the home market, but also for export.
In the 5th chapter "Roman Soil Erosion" of the book "Reconstruction by Way of the Soil" by Guy Theodore Wrench , the author describes the effects of the grain demand on the Roman provinces:
“'One province after another was turned into a desert by Rome,' wrote Simkhovitch, 'one province after another was conquered by Rome in order to supply the proletarians with grain and further enrich the rich. The war devastation did the rest. The only exception to the normal case of looting and exhaustion was Egypt because of the Nile flooding. Hence Egypt played a central role within the empire. The province was privately owned by the emperors, and neither senators nor Roman knights were allowed to enter it without special permission, because, as Tacitus wrote, "no matter how small a number, could occupy the rich cornland and force Italy into submission".
Lazio, Campania, Sardinia, Sicily, Spain and finally North Africa served as granaries of the Roman Empire and were farmed until they were exhausted. Overworked land in Lazio and Campania was finally abandoned and turned into swamps, in North Africa to deserts, as the soil had lost its firming roots. "The fall of the Roman Empire is also a story of soil depletion, deforestation and erosion," wrote GV Jacks in The Rape of the Earth . 'From Spain to Palestine there are no forest areas left on the coasts of the Mediterranean, the region is decidedly arid instead of showing the mild character of humid forest landscapes and most of the once abundant arable land is now at the bottom of the sea.' "
Farm animals and overgrazing
A major cause of environmental degradation was the grazing of farm animals. The erosion of plants clinging to hills and young trees eroded, causing the soil to evaporate and reveal the bare stone below. In addition, gravel and silt were washed from the slopes, which led to other problems such as flooding, silting and the formation of marshes.
military
A strong army was of great importance for resource-hungry Rome. The wealth of resources in a province to be conquered was often an important criterion for the decision to integrate. As farmers were often forced to take part in military campaigns, the land lay fallow for a long time. The size of the standing Roman army was about 300,000 soldiers with an increase to up to 600,000 in the late Roman period. Marching Roman legions often deforested entire areas in order to gain wood for camp construction or to prevent enemies from ambushing.
shipbuilding
Ships were the basic means of integrating the Mediterranean countries into the Roman world economy, and a fleet was the means of defending these trade routes and maintaining rule. When resources were scarce, the construction of warships had priority over merchant shipbuilding. Several thousand ships were built in the classical period, hundreds could be built within a few months in the event of war. The high demand for wood led to a great lack of material in the vicinity of the shipbuilding industries. The only means left was to transport wood from more distant areas, an expensive undertaking.
urbanization
The urbanization process that began in the Roman provinces was determined by the availability of natural resources. Flat areas with quick access to a water transport route were preferred, but with the increasing expansion of Roman industries and trade routes, colonization also shifted to less favorable terrain.
The emergence of large metropolises contributed to deforestation, as the constant population pressure forced the residents to move to hilly peripheral areas. Wood was also needed in large quantities for the construction and maintenance of the typical monuments of a Roman city.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Boyle, JF, Gaillard, M.-J., Kaplan, JO and Dearing, JA: Modeling prehistoric land use and carbon budgets: A critical review . In: The Holocene . 2011. doi : 10.1177 / 0959683610386984 .
- ↑ Williams, Michael. (2006) Deforesting the Earth: From Pre-History to Global Crisis. At Abridgement. Chicago: University of Chicago, 62.
- ↑ Hughes, J. Donald. (1994) Pan's Travail. Maryland: Johns Hopkins, 157.
- ↑ Hughes, J. Donald. (1994) Pan's Travail. Maryland: Johns Hopkins, 192
- ↑ Williams, Michael. (2006) Deforesting the Earth: From Pre-History to Global Crisis. At Abridgement. Chicago: University of Chicago, 63.
- ↑ Williams, Michael. (2006) Deforesting the Earth: From Pre-History to Global Crisis. At Abridgement. Chicago: University of Chicago, 68.
- ↑ Hughes, J. Donald. (1994) Pan's Travail. Maryland: Johns Hopkins, p.190
- ↑ a b Chew, Sing. (2001) World Ecological Degradation. Walnut Creek: AltaMira, 92
- ↑ Hughes, J. Donald. (1994) Pan's Travail. Maryland: Johns Hopkins, 86.