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A28    SCIENCE
                 Tuesday 3 december 2019
            Scientists race to document Puerto Rico's coastal heritage


































            In this photo combo provided by Eric Lo, shows the shoreline in Manati, on Aug. 2017, left, before hurricane Maria and on Nov. 2017, after the Hurricane Maria, in
            Puerto Rico.
                                                                                                                                            Associated Press

            By DÁNICA COTO               profit environmental group   were eventually wiped out  when  hurricanes  hit.  Some  "Pieces of land where I had
            Associated Press             based in Puerto Rico.        after  the  arrival  of  Christo-  scientists  say  that  warmer  stood and flown the drone
            SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP)  The  first  site  scientists  tar-  pher  Columbus  and  Euro-  temperatures  increase  the  didn't  exist  anymore,"  he
            —  A  group  of  U.S.-based  geted  was  a  large  swath   pean settlers.              frequency  and  intensity  of  said.  "They  were  underwa-
            scientists is rushing to doc-  along  the  U.S.  territory's   "Up to today, there is still a  storms.  Puerto  Rico  is  ex-  ter."  Scientists  are  now  try-
            ument    indigenous    sites  north coast that includes a   lot we don't know about in-  posed to storms every year  ing to determine the extent
            along  Puerto  Rico's  coast  ceremonial center used by   digenous culture along our  for  six  months  during  the  of  coastal  erosion  in  that
            dating  back  a  couple  of  the  Taino  Indians  roughly   coasts," Rivera said. "It's not  Atlantic  hurricane  season,  region  and  the  hurricane's
            thousand  years  before  ris-  2,000  years  ago,  said  Isa-  in our history books."  and  the  scientists  noted  impact on the archaeolog-
            ing sea levels linked to cli-  bel  Rivera  Collazo,  an  en-  "The  entire  coast  is  blan-  that  the  storm  surge  from  ical site they are studying.
            mate  change  destroy  a  vironmental  archaeologist      keted  with  archaeological  Hurricane  Maria  washed  Three-dimensional  models
            large  chunk  of  the  island's  at UCSD who is overseeing   sites,"  she  said.  "We  want  away  part  of  the  region  based  on  drone  images
            heritage  that  is  still  being  the  project  that  began  in   to recover that information  they're studying.    are being used to measure
            discovered.                  August 2017.                 before it disappears."       "It's literally in the eye of the  distances,  areas,  volumes
            Scientists  hope  to  use  the  Scientists  discovered  what   Puerto Rico's Department of  storm quite regularly," Kue-  and  explore  fine  details:
            3D  images  they've  taken  appears  to  be  a  large     Natural Resources has said  ster said of the island.      "You start asking these de-
            so  far  to  also  help  identify  settlement  just  east  of  the   the sea level around the is-  Eric  Lo,  an  engineer  with  tails  that  historically  you
            which historic sites are most  ceremonial  site  thanks  to   land is rising by more than  the  UCSD's  cultural  heri-  couldn't," Kuester said.
            vulnerable  to  hurricanes,  drones  and  technology      3 millimeters — a little over  tage initiative, flew to Puer-  The   engineering   initia-
            erosion and other dangers  including  3D  images,  she    a  tenth  of  an  inch  —  per  to  Rico  in  August  2017  to  tive  that  he  oversees  has
            before it's too late to save  said.  They  were  also  able   year.  But  climate  change  launch the project a month  helped explore other histor-
            the island's patrimony.      to  determine  the  shape    has   more    immediately  before Maria hit the island  ic  sites  elsewhere,  includ-
            "It's  literally  being  washed  of the ceremonial site, she   dramatic  effects  as  well,  as a Category 4 hurricane.  ing  an  underwater  cave
            away,"  said  Falko  Kuester,  added.                     destroying  habitats,  erod-  Lo was surprised at what he  with  prehistoric  fossils  and
            director  of  the  Cultural  Armed  with  that  informa-  ing coastlines and causing  saw upon his return to the  a  baptistery  in  Florence,
            Heritage Engineering Initia-  tion,  scientists  used  exca-  more powerful storm surges  U.S. territory months later.  Italy.q
            tive at the University of Cal-  vations  to  determine  that
            ifornia,  San  Diego,  which  one of six plazas previously
            is  involved  in  the  project.  discovered   appears   to
            "A  big  part  of  what  we're  have  been  used  for  cer-
            working on is  to make  the  emonial  dances  and  the
            invisible  visible  and  make  veneration of ancestors.
            sure it stays in our memory."  "The inside of the plaza was
            Also involved in the project  intensively trampled," Rive-
            are  UCSD's  Scripps  Institu-  ra said.
            tion of Oceanography and  The Tainos populated vari-
            Para la Naturaleza, a non-   ous  Caribbean  islands  but
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