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Paper short abstract:

The main goal of TRASH is to understand how marine debris was perceived by the early modern Iberian societies and if an early starting point of water bodies contamination around cities can be identified. Focusing on Atlantic geography, it also relates with issues of blue globalization.

Paper long abstract:

After the 15th century there was a significant increase in nautical activity that changed medieval navigation patterns. The flow of a larger number of ships, people and goods impacted ports and port-cities, adding pressure on maritime environment and shorelines. This growth demanded the attention of local authorities to epidemic and public health problems. In fact, current historiography regarding pollution is linked to public health problems, plagues and diseases caused by dirtiness. TRASH focuses on maritime and aquatic dirtiness as a consequence of increased people movement. Building of embankments on riverside together with manufactures, such as metal foundries, shipyards, tanning, fishing, and other coastal activities brought an increase of toxicity in surroundings, and the rise of urban waste flushing and debris from ships on call created threats to navigation. At the same time, nearshore shipwrecks and consequent debris, animal, and human bodies introduced, for the first time in history, a large quantity of heavy metals and nutrients into the aquatic environment, leading to the eutrophication of waters. Focusing on Atlantic geography, with this project we look for traces of maritime pollution and levels of awareness in European and colonial societies of the 15th-18th centuries. The goal is to understand how marine debris was perceived by local governance and population, what were the impacts, and how problems were managed. TRASH is an interdisciplinary approach between history and archeology methods, through the analysis of wreck remains and environmental samples, while contributing to the discourse of the first/blue globalization.