Abstract

The coastline of Morocco extends across the northwest Maghreb region of Africa, from the western Mediterranean to the eastern Atlantic. Cultural heritage resources include archaeological remains that reveal a myriad of past human activities in the country’s coastal zone, from Middle Paleolithic habitation sites to historical large-scale port infrastructure. As also experienced globally, natural and anthropogenic factors are affecting the stability and morphology of Morocco’s coastal zone and impacting the archaeological sites therein. Recently, Morocco ratified the UN Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) Protocol and enacted a national ICZM law that include frameworks for management plans to include cultural heritage resources. One of the main challenges to developing ICZM plans in Morocco, however, is a gap in knowledge: there has been no baseline assessment of how all the factors at play impact cultural heritage assets. By focusing on northern Morocco as a case study, I identify six factors that specifically affect the coastline with examples of documented and potential impacts on archaeological sites. This is intended as a preliminary assessment that also aims to contribute to the development and content of potential management plans with recommendations for next steps.

摘要

摩洛哥的海岸线横跨非洲西北部的马格里布地区，从西地中海到东大西洋。文化遗产资源包括考古遗迹，这些遗迹揭示了该国沿海地区过去无数的人类活动，从旧石器时代中期的居住地到历史悠久的大型港口基础设施。正如全球所经历的那样，自然和人为因素正在影响摩洛哥沿海地区的稳定性和形态，并影响其中的考古遗址。最近，摩洛哥批准了联合国海岸带综合管理 (ICZM) 协议，并颁布了国家 ICZM 法，其中包括管理计划框架，包括文化遗产资源。然而，在摩洛哥制定 ICZM 计划的主要挑战之一是知识差距：目前还没有对所有起作用的因素如何影响文化遗产资产进行基线评估。通过以摩洛哥北部为案例研究，我确定了六个具体影响海岸线的因素，并举例说明了对考古遗址的记录和潜在影响。这是一项初步评估，旨在为潜在管理计划的制定和内容做出贡献，并为后续步骤提供建议。