Resumen

ROJAS, Facundo. The role of mining and the railway in the deforestation of western La Rioja and Catamarca (Argentina) in the 1851-1942 period. Poblac. soc. [online]. 2013, vol.20, n.2, pp.99-123. ISSN 1852-8562.

This paper describes and interprets the deforestation processes of algarrobo forests that took place in western La Rioja and Catamarca between 1851 and 1942. These are connected to the deforestation brought about by economic modernization, in general, and by the mining activities and railway expansion, in particular. After analyzing railway statistics and other documentary sources we examined the Biogeographic Region of the Monte, specifically the valleys and basins of western La Rioja and Catamarca, where a very large exploitation of native Prosopis forests was carried out.

Palabras clave : Deforestation; Mining; Railway line; Development; Environmental history.

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