Past and Future Earth: Archaeology and Soil Studies on Ambergris Caye, Belize

Abstract

Marco Gonzalez is one of a number of Maya sites on Belize’s coast and cayes (coral islands) that exhibit anomalous vegetation and dark-coloured soils. Like Amazonian Dark Earths (ADEs), the soils are sought locally for cultivation and are underlain by anthropogenic deposits. Our research is aimed at assessing the role of the anthropogenic deposits in soil formation processes with a view to developing strategies to quantify the long-term environmental impact of human activities today.