Doctoral Dissertation Research: Development of Irrigated Agriculture in Wailau Valley, Moloka'i, Hawai'i

博士论文研究：夏威夷摩洛凯岛怀劳谷灌溉农业的发展

• 批准号: 0617547
• 负责人: Michael Graves
• 金额: $ 1.19万
• 依托单位: University of Hawaii
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-06-15 至 2007-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0617547&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Development; Irrigated

Under the direction of Dr. Michael Granes, Ms. Windy McElroy will conduct her doctoral dissertation research. This project will develop and test general models that can be applied to a particular sequence of wetland agricultural change in the Hawaiian Islands. This project will be focused on Wailau Valley, located on the remote windward coast of Molokai. Here, a series of intact irrigated agricultural terraces are distributed across a 936-hectare valley. Abandoned nearly 100 years ago, Wailau offers a pristine and well-preserved wet valley that has not been previously studied. This work explores the roles of geographic expansion and intensification in the development of traditional agriculture in Hawaii. Two models are created that describe wetland agricultural development: the first, in which locations for farming are chosen in relation to achieving maximum agricultural output; and the second, in which farmers first selected low-risk areas that required the least amount of work to cultivate and later moved to areas that would require a greater labor investment for farming. This research will involve mapping the wetland agricultural systems, conducting archaeological excavations, developing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data bases, analyzing nutrient levels in natural and cultivated soils, and radiocarbon dating. One season of fieldwork has been successfully completed, 12.5 hectares of the valley were surveyed, and nearly 100 agricultural terraces were mapped. A number of terraces were excavated and charcoal was collected for radiocarbon dating. Initial dates obtained thus far hint at a pattern of agricultural development in which side drainages deep in the valley were exploited as early as the 13th Century A.D., long before cultivation of the flat low-lying expanses along the major streams. These latter areas may have been colonized as late as the 19th Century. These preliminary results support the second model of agricultural development, as the smaller side drainages contain rejuvenated soils from slope erosion, require less effort to build terraces and cultivate wetland crops such as taro, and are less prone to the risk of flooding.An integral part of this research is the involvement of Molokai residents. A number of residents have completed an archaeological training program taught by McElroy in 2005. The program was designed to create sustainable employment opportunities for the residents of Molokai who have one of the highest rates of unemployment in the state. The course consisted of introductory classroom and field instruction in the Spring of 2005, and an advanced archaeological field course during the Summer of 2005 in Wailau. Enlisting graduates of this program to assist with this research broadens the participation of underrepresented groups in archaeology, as Molokai is home to a high percentage of Native Hawaiian and multi-ethnic residents.The study of agricultural development by archaeologists is one area in which the findings have potential import not only for historical sciences but for the contemporary world. The factors that promoted increased agricultural production in the past, such as technological and genetic innovations, are relevant today. The degree to which agricultural systems were sustainable in the past may also offer clues to understanding how contemporary farming can be maintained without excessive environmental damage.

在Michael Granes博士的指导下，Windy McElroy女士将进行博士论文研究。该项目将开发和测试可应用于夏威夷群岛湿地农业变化特定序列的一般模型。该项目将集中在位于莫洛凯岛偏远迎风海岸的Wailau山谷。 在这里，一系列完整的灌溉农业梯田分布在936公顷的山谷中。被遗弃近100年前，Wailau提供了一个原始和保存完好的湿谷，以前没有研究过。这项工作探讨了地理扩张和集约化在夏威夷传统农业发展中的作用。两种模式创建，描述湿地农业发展：第一，在农业的位置选择有关实现最大的农业产量;和第二，农民首先选择低风险的地区，需要最少的工作量来培养，后来转移到地区，将需要更多的劳动力投资的农业。 这项研究将涉及绘制湿地农业系统，进行考古发掘，开发地理信息系统（GIS）数据库，分析自然和耕作土壤中的营养水平，以及放射性碳测年。一个季节的实地工作已经成功完成，对12.5公顷的山谷进行了调查，并绘制了近100个农业梯田的地图。挖掘了一些梯田，并收集了木炭进行放射性碳年代测定。 迄今为止获得的初步日期暗示了农业发展的模式，早在公元世纪，山谷深处的侧排水系统就被开发利用，早在沿着主要河流的平坦低洼地带耕种之前。这些地区可能在19世纪世纪就被殖民了。这些初步结果支持第二种农业发展模式，因为较小的侧沟包含从斜坡侵蚀恢复的土壤，需要更少的努力来建造梯田和种植湿地作物，如芋头，并且不太容易发生洪水的风险。2005年，一些居民完成了麦克尔罗伊教授的考古培训课程。该计划旨在为莫洛凯岛的居民创造可持续的就业机会，莫洛凯岛是该州失业率最高的地区之一。该课程包括2005年春季的入门课堂和实地教学，以及2005年夏季在Wailau举办的高级考古实地课程。招募该计划的毕业生来协助这项研究扩大了考古学中代表性不足的群体的参与，因为莫洛凯岛是夏威夷原住民和多民族居民的高比例的家园。考古学家对农业发展的研究是一个领域，其中的发现不仅对历史科学，而且对当代世界都有潜在的重要性。过去促进农业增产的因素，如技术和基因创新，今天仍然适用。过去农业系统的可持续性程度也可能为理解当代农业如何在不过度破坏环境的情况下维持提供线索。