Climate change is threatening our archaeological record, experts warn

In fact, researchers estimate that around half of the world’s wetlands have been lost — a fact that will likely further exacerbate climate change, as these natural environments are known to serve as carbon sinks.

As temperature and precipitation patterns change, it is feared that many of the surviving wetlands will also dry out.

For example, research on Glastonbury Lake Village, an Iron Age settlement preserved in wetlands in Somerset has found that the water dropped by almost a foot during the warm summer of 2018 alone.

However, Professor Matthiesen has cautioned, all is not lost. He explains: “The good news is that it is often possible to influence the local hydrology and protect wetlands.

“As they can help sequester carbon, the protection of wetland archaeology and climate change mitigation can go hand-in-hand.”

READ MORE: Archaeologists stumble across vital across vital clue about Babylon

Article source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1691260/climate-change-threatening-archaeological-record-oceans-wetlands-cop27