An archaeological approach to regional environmental pollution in the south-western Iberian Peninsula related to Third millennium BC mining and metallurgy

The results reveal that the copper metallurgy which developed in the south-western Iberian Peninsula in the Third millennium BC augmented deforestation, increased the rate of erosion processes and contaminated, at a regional scale, the waters of the Gulf of Cádiz - corresponding to the mouth of the Tinto and Odiel rivers - with heavy metals.