Exploring Anthropogenic Causes of St. Croix's Environmental Conditions

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "“Folkeliv” and Black Folks’ Lives: Archaeology, History, and Contemporary Black Atlantic Communities", at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

In the 21st century St. Croix (of the U.S. Virgin Islands) is a difficult place to live. Present day Crucians, many of whom are descendants of enslaved Africans (who were brought to the island to work on sugar plantations), regularly endure droughts and lack access to reliable, safe, and affordable drinking water. Moreover, several of the island’s natural aquafers have become contaminated with salt water, and siltation from the island’s eroding landmass continues to harm nearby critical coral reef ecosystems.

Despite these inhospitable environmental conditions, there is still valuable archaeological and environmental research that can be conducted in St. Croix. This paper will discuss the preliminary results of an interdisciplinary investigation into the role(s) that sugar planting, cattle ranching, and other land uses have played in creating the environmental conditions we see in St. Croix today.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• “Folkeliv” and Black Folks’ Lives: Archaeology, History, and Contemporary Black Atlantic Communities   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2023

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow