ESST1006

HUMAN IMPACTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT

READING PROJECT REPORT

REPORT TITLE: SUBSISTENCE PATTERNS

AND HUMAN AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES
FROM 12 000 BC TO PRESENT

APPROACH: INFORMATIVE ARTICLE

Date of submission: Monday 27th March 2017

 The Fertile Crescent is a crescent moon shaped region in the Middle East that curves
from the Persian Gulf, through modern day Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and northern
Egypt. It is referred to as the “cradle of civilization” and considered to be the birthplace of
urbanization, writing, organized religion, trade and agriculture. The location of the region
allows for easier trade between settlements and a range of crops to be grown there.
Agriculture and domestication began in the region around 10 000 BC, by 9 000 BC, the
cultivation of wild grains and cereals was wide-spread and by 5 000 BC irrigation of
agricultural crops was fully developed[CITATION Mar09 \t \l 11273 ]. By at least 7 000 BC
sheep, goats and pigs had been domesticated, in the Fertile Crescent, and cattle were
domesticated by at least 6 000 BC. By 12 000 BC, the region had soils that were
uncharacteristically different than its surrounding areas, as the soils were fertile, whereas,
most of the region was to arid for farming. This resulted in the formation of civilizations
within the crescent shaped area. Between 12 000 BC and present, there have been four main
subsistence patterns in the Fertile Crescent, all of which have agricultural technology and
systems of production.

Throughout human history, from 12 000 BC to present day, methods of obtaining

adequate food resources has been a contributing factor in the surival of communities as well
as their distribution and population size. Subsistence Patterns can be defined as the methods a
society uses to obtain its food and other necessities [CITATION GlossaryofTerms_ONe091 \l
11273 ]. A major driver of changes in subsistence patterns is the requirement all humans have
for food. Others include the location of food resources and the accessibility of food resources
to memebers of the community. Pressures on food requirements include the fertility of the
soils and the availibility and accessabilty fo water resources, as well as, the climate of the
region.

These impact the size of population, along with its location. Population size increases
as food resources become surplus, the ability for food resources to support groups for
prolonged periods of time would result in the development of settlements. The formation of
settlements fascillitated growth in populations as less travelling meant that more offspring
could be produced; especially to increase the labour force. Settlement lead to increased
dependence on environmental conditions, domestication of animals, like cattle, and plant
species, like wheat and barely, as well as it required increased food productoin and resulted in
increased environmental degredation.
 Agricultural Technology can be defined as the way in which humans modify nature to
meet their nutritional needs and wants. A driver for changes in agricultural technology could
be a decrease in the ease of availability and accessibility of food. Others may include,
increases in population size leading to the invention of new technology, due to necessity of
meeting food production requirements and the availability of fertile, arable land. Population
size, as well as the cultural practices and dietary preferences of the populations may result in
the need of civilizations to create innovative, technological processes and products to meet
the material needs of its people. An example of this, that changed human history is the
invention of the wheel.

Through an analysis of the general trends of agricultural technology, it is mainly used

to increase the amount of food produced, shorten the time to produce it and reduce the labour
required for production. With this comes increased extraction and exploitation of resources,
along with environmental impacts, like pollution of watercourse and acidification of lands,
which poses risks to human health. Though the main effects of agriculture are positive
through its nutritional benefits of food consumption, other aspects of agriculture impinge on
health, two of which are food contamination and those hazards associated with plant and
animal rearing[ CITATION Haz07 \l 11273 ]. These contribute to the spread of disease and
ultimately affects population’s size and quality of life.

Systems food production involves all the processes and infrastructure associated with
feeding a population. It includes all process from growing of crops to consumption, these
may include harvesting, processing and transportation. Two major drivers of food production
systems are the demand for food and the availability of land that can be used for cultivation.
Factors that express pressures on food production include the climate of the region, resource
extraction and water availability. These can lead to resource depletion and land degradation
to combat these effects human innovation is required and new agricultural systems and
technologies are created. Ultimately, by incorporating new technologies into systems of food
production new subsistence patterns might arise.

The first subsistence pattern was foraging, these people are also called the hunter-
gathers. These populations depended heavily on resources that could be collected from the
environment. They gathered wild nuts and berries, fished from nearby rivers and hunted land
mammals. These groups collected food using gender processes; women gathered and men
hunted. The fruit and nuts gathered by the women made up the majority of their diets. Each
group required a large area to roam, not only because only a small amount of plants were
suitable for people to consume, but that fruits were seasonal thus these groups moved
throughout territories frequently to meet the group’s nutritional needs [ CITATION
TimeMaps17 \l 1033 ] and set up temporary encampments where they stopped. These groups
were nomadic groups and comprised typically of an intergenerational, extended family which
temporarily created small settlements and would leave to find new resources when food
became scarce.

To successfully gather materials for food these nomadic foragers had simple tools. By
12,000 BC, these tools were primarily made of stone and bone, these tools were crude and
created by striking objects together creating the required shape and sharpness. These tools
include stone mortars and pestles and hunting instruments, like primitive knifes. Fundamental
to their survival was the ability to create and maintain fire; which is needed for light and heat,
as well as cooking. Fire would also later become important in religious rites and rituals.

The second pattern is pastoralism, which involves some dependence on domesticated

animals for the subsistence of human populations. In pastoralism, livestock belonged to the
entire group and there generally was no wealth inequality. Pastoralism in the Fertile Crescent
began around 10 000 BC [CITATION TimeMaps17 \y \l 11273 ] and has been important to the
survival and thrive of human populations, especially in the Middle East, much of which being
very dry and unsuitable for arable farming and cultivation[ CITATION Ear17 \l 1033 ]. These
societies were usually nomadic or semi-nomadic and would live in temporary encampments
and temporary structures. They would move considerable distances between pastures due to
ecological circumstances and the needs of their livestock [ CITATION Ric17 \l 11273 ]. Later
groups established permanent settlements near pastures.

A driver responsible for the shift from the hunter-gather lifestyle to pastoralism is the
domestication of animals. Domestication of livestock meant that the ancient civilizations had
a relative amount of stability, in terms of their food resources and eventually travelled less
annually in search of food. Domestication also increased the accessibility of food resources
available to the population and decreased the amount of hunting that was needed to
supplement nutritional needs. Domestication of animals allowed for the building of more
permanent settlements[CITATION Mar10 \t \l 11273 ]. It also meant that the pastoralists had
more of an environmental impact than the hunter gathers, as animal rearing requires more
water and land resources to feed and meet the needs of livestock, as well as the impact of
feeding on the biodiversity of the region. Domestication could have also allowed for
surpluses of food production resulting in the need and development of trade between tribes or
groups.

The third subsistence pattern is horticulture. It is low intensity farming which involves
part time planting and tending of domesticated food plants and animals [ CITATION
GlossaryofTerms_ONe091 \l 11273 ]. Horticulturalists had a shifting pattern of field use, when
production reduced due to overuse and depletion of soils they move to a new area to cultivate
crops. In this pattern, areas of vegetation are cleared using a “slash and burn” technique. In
“slash and burn” vegetation is cut down, allowed to dry and then burnt, this acts as fertilizer
to the soil and is the only form of fertilizers added. Since, these practices utilize rotation of
cultivation sites and periodically reverting land to wilderness they could cultivate only a
small fraction of the area they occupied, thus allowing for limited population densities.

Horticultural practices were labour intensive farming, using pointed sticks hoes or
other hand tools to make hole in the soil to plant [CITATION ONe07 \t \l 11273 ]. They practiced
agriculture using gender practices, where men would clear land and women were responsible
for planting, tending and harvesting crops. In the Fertile Crescent, evidence suggests that
settlements from about 8 000 BC which indicated that horticulture may have been the
primary source of subsistence. Having food resources close and, generally, constant
throughout the year ultimately lead to the formation of true permanent human settlements in
the region.

Factors that were influenced the shift from the foraging to horticulture include
environmental change and population growth. Global climate changed after the last glacial
period, which ended about 12 000 years ago, global temperatures increased, sea levels rose,
which reduced land mass and altered the habits of some of the animals and plant species in
the area. It also reduced the population of large game in the region and permitted the spread
of wild cereals to more accessible areas. Increased population growth created greater
competition for limited resources. This meant that new systems had to be created to feed the
population. Population growth and the reduction of land mass would increase population
densities and would result in more food requirements and less space for each group.
Horticulture was an improvement to the forager lifestyle as it allowed groups to occupy less
territory and assist in providing enough food to feed the population.
 The final subsistence pattern is intensive agriculture. Intensive agriculture is
characterized by full-time farming in which large animals or highly mechanized farm
equipment are used to prepare land for planting and harvesting of crops[CITATION
GlossaryofTerms_ONe091 \t \l 11273 ]. It usually involves the use of irrigation or other forms
of water management. In the Fertile Crescent, intensive agriculture began around 5 000 BC.
In this region, domesticated oxen were used to pull ploughs to turn over soils before planting
occurred. This was done to turn over the top soil allowing fresh nutrients to surface, bury
weeds and remains from previous harvests allowing them to break down. Irrigation systems,
an important characteristic of intensive agriculture in the Fertile Crescent, where constructed
by creating open canals that were constructed to send water from major watercourse to
farmlands.

The development of intensive agriculture is due to the development of permanent

settlements. With permanent and immobile food resources, settlements had to be formed
nearby in order benefit from and tend to the crops and livestock. Permanent settlement also
lead to increases in population growth and thus creates strains on existing land and water
resources, as well as increases in population densities. Increases population size and density
means that there are more people whose nutritional needs must to be met, but less space to
produce yield.

Intensive agriculture is still practiced in modern day populous societies; however, it

now incorporates the use of computerized systems, machines and chemical fertilizers. The
principle of using irrigation in crop cultivation is still used in modern day intensive
agriculture. In modern day Iran, to meet food production demand, irrigation is used to
provide water to regions that do not have ready access to water, it is estimated that 3.31
million hectares of surface water is used for irrigation[CITATION Jar07 \l 11273 ]. Irrigation of
land increases the salinity of soils which make infertile, to combat this, fertilizers are used
which cause other problems, one of which is eutrophication of watercourses.

Undoubtedly, meeting the basic nutritional needs of human populations requires large
land areas and will have negative environmental impacts. Generally, agricultural practices
place strains on land and water resources, due to misuse and mismanagement. Shifts in
subsistence patterns away from the minimally invasive foragers has increased the
environmental damage done by each. Advancements in subsistence patterns is correlated with
increases in human population growth, along with environmental manipulation and human
innovation. As subsistence patterns develop, populations are no longer limited by available
food resources within an area, allowing greater independence from the environmental
conditions.
 References

n.d. Early Pastoralists. Accessed March 25, 2017. http://www.timemaps.com/pastoralists.

Hazell, Peter, and Stanley Wood. 2007. "Drivers of Change in Global Agriculture." (Philosophical
Transactions of the Royal Society). Accessed March 25, 2017. doi:10.1098/rstb.2007.2166.

Jaradat, A. A. 2007. "Agriculture in Iraq: Resources, Potentials, Constraints and Research Needs and
Priorities." https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/50600000/Products-
Reprints/2002/1107.pdf.

Mark, Joshua J. 2009. Ancient History Encyclopedia. September 02. Accessed March 20, 2017.
http://www.ancient.eu/Fertile_Crescent/.

—. 2010. Ancient History Encyclopedia. July 27. Accessed March 20, 2017.
http://www.ancient.eu/Animal_Husbandry/.

2010. Civilization and Pastoralism in Mesopotamia. Apr 21. Accessed March 20, 2017.
http://teachingcompany.fr.yuku.com/topic/2531/12-Civilization-and-Pastoralism-in-
Mesopotamia#.WNXaZfnyvIU.

O'Neil, Dennis. 2009. Glossary of Terms. Septemeber 2009. Accessed March 23, 2017.
http://anthro.palomar.edu/subsistence/glossary.htm#.

—. 2009. Horticultural Subsistence. September 21. Accessed March 24, 2017.

anthro.palomar.edu/subsistence/sub_4.htm.

Richerson, Peter. n.d. "Chapter 5. Pastorial Societies." Accessed March 25, 2017.
http://www.des.ucdavis.edu/faculty/Richerson/BooksOnline/He5-95.pdf.

n.d. The World of Hunter-Gatherers. Accessed March 21, 2017. http://www.timemaps.com/hunter-

gatherer.