LATE HOLOCENE PALEOCLIMATIC RECORDS FROM LAKE PAC CHEN AND CARWASH CENOTE, QUINTANA ROO, MEXICO

Abstract

The disintegration of the Classic Maya throughout the Terminal Classic (750-900 C.E.) is a complex loss of human population that has presented many questions about climate change and its impact on humanity. With droughts proposed as a prominent cause, understanding the quality and availability of groundwater resources at the time is pivotal to further determining the spatial and temporal distributions of population deterioration. The Yucatan aquifer consists of karstic cave systems, with a small number of inland lakes, which have previously been termed closed to the aquifer. It is important to understand how both of these types of water bodies react to long- and short-term forcing mechanisms such drying climate, sea-level rise and precipitation events. Using a variety of spatial and temporal records to determine aquifer evolution, changes and connectivity throughout the Holocene it will further understanding of how the aquifer reacts to changes in climate and the implications this may have had on the Classic Maya. Four sediment cores from Pac Chen Lake and two sediment cores from Carwash Cenote were collected to investigate Holocene paleoclimatic trends on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. Records of past climate, groundwater conditions and flooding history at both sites were determined through microfossil and micro X-Ray fluorescence data. In Pac Chen Lake, elevation and timing of flooding of the lake coincided with sea-level rise. Using Ti, Fe and K records to determine wet vs dry conditions, dry periods through the terminal classic coincided with other paleoclimate records, but with no evidence of draw-down within the lake. Both of these observations imply connection of the lake to the aquifer. The Cl record from Carwash was used alongside a core from the Yax Chen cave system to observe spatial and temporal potability of the aquifer. An overall freshening trend in the coastal groundwater occurred throughout the Holocene. The largest amount of this freshening transpired through the Terminal Classic. At this time, populations inland were experiencing deterioration, while coastal populations along the coast continued to survive. Comparing Cl records at various depths and distances from the coast proved that Cl is impacted by proximity to the halocline.