@article{fdi:010052932,
  title = {{C}ombining charcoal and elemental black carbon analysis in sedimentary archives : implications for past fire regimes, the pyrogenic carbon cycle, and the human-climate interactions},
  author = {{T}h{\'e}venon, {F}. and {W}illiamson, {D}avid and {B}ard, {E}. and {A}nselmetti, {F}. {S}. and {B}eaufort, {L}. and {C}achier, {H}.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{T}his paper addresses the quantification of combustion-derived products in oceanic and continental sediments by optical and chemical approaches, and the interest of combining such methods for reconstructing past biomass burning activity and the pyrogenic carbon cycle. {I}n such context, the dark particles >0.2 mu m(2) remaining after the partial digestion of organic matter are optically counted by automated image analysis and defined as charcoal, while the elemental carbon remaining after thermal and chemical oxidative treatments is quantified as black carbon ({BC}). {T}he obtained pyrogenic carbon records from three sediment core-based case studies, (i) the {L}ate {P}leistocene equatorial {P}acific {O}cean. (ii) the mid-{H}olocene {E}uropean {L}ake {L}ucerne, and (iii) the {L}ate {H}olocene {A}frican {L}ake {M}asoko, are interpreted as proxy records of regional transportation mechanisms and biomass burning activities. {T}he results show that the burial of dark carbon-rich particles in the 360 kyr-long record from the west equatorial {P}acific is controlled by the combination of sea-level changes and low-latitude atmospheric circulation patterns (summer monsoon dynamics). {H}owever, the three fold increases in charcoal and {BC} sediment influxes between 53-43 and 12-10 kyr {BP} suggest that major shifts in fire activity occur synchronously with human colonization in the {I}ndo/{P}acific region. {T}he coarse charcoal distribution from a 7.2 kyr record from {L}ake {L}ucerne in {S}witzerland closely matches the regional timing of major technical, land-use, and socio-economic changes during the {N}eolithic (between ca. 5.7 and 5.2 kyr {BP} and 4.9-4.5 kyr {BP}), the {B}ronze and {I}ron {A}ges (at ca. 3.3 and 2.4 kyr {BP}, respectively), and the industrialization (after {AD} 1838), pointing to the key impact of human activities on the sources, transportation processes and reservoirs of refractory carbon during the {H}olocene. {I}n the tropical {M}asoko maar lake in {T}anzania, where charcoal and {BC} records are highly sensitive to the local climate and environment, surface runoffs from forested areas and/or aerial transportation over short distances are also important sources for detrital charred particles. {H}owever, this 4.3 kyr-long record exhibits a major increase in charcoal and {BC} sediment influxes between 1.8 and 0.6 kyr {BP}, synchronously with the regional extent of {L}ate {I}ron {A}ge and agricultural innovations. {T}herefore, in both marine and terrestrial depositional environments, the climate- and vegetation-controlled fire regimes appear to be strongly associated to societal changes, or directly affected by human practices. {I}n fact, the anthropogenic effect associated to past human activities (e.g. settlement, agriculture, and metallurgy) has temporarily at least tripled the emissions of pyrogenic carbon in the environment. {H}owever, the data from the three {L}ate {P}leistocene to {H}olocene sequences also show that the redistribution of fossil particles by runoff and erosion processes is a significant source of pyrogenic carbon that should be understood as a prerequisite for interpreting sedimentary records of biomass burning.},
  keywords = {biomass burning ; carbon cycle ; charcoal ; black carbon ; climate ; human ; impact},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{G}lobal and {P}lanetary {C}hange},
  volume = {72},
  numero = {4},
  pages = {381--389},
  ISSN = {0921-8181},
  year = {2010},
  DOI = {10.1016/j.gloplacha.2010.01.014},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010052932},
}