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Are we now living in the Anthropocene?

Are we now living in the Anthropocene?
Are we now living in the Anthropocene?
The term Anthropocene, proposed and increasingly employed to denote the current interval of anthropogenic global environmental change, may be discussed on stratigraphic grounds. A case can be made for its consideration as a formal epoch in that, since the start of the Industrial Revolution, Earth has endured changes sufficient to leave a global stratigraphic signature distinct from that of the Holocene or of previous Pleistocene interglacial phases, encompassing novel biotic, sedimentary, and geochemical change. These changes, although likely only in their initial phases, are sufficiently distinct and robustly established for suggestions of a Holocene–Anthropocene boundary in the recent historical past to be geologically reasonable. The boundary may be defined either via Global Stratigraphic Section and Point (“golden spike”) locations or by adopting a numerical date. Formal adoption of this term in the near future will largely depend on its utility, particularly to earth scientists working on late Holocene successions. This datum, from the perspective of the far future, will most probably approximate a distinctive stratigraphic boundary.
1052-5173
4-8
Zalasiewicz, J.
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Williams, M.
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Smith, A.
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Barry, T.L.
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Coe, A.L.
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Bown, P.R.
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Brenchley, P.
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Cantrill, D.
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Gale, A.
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Gibbard, P.
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Gregory, F.J.
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Hounslow, M.W.
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Kerr, A.C.
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Pearson, P.
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Knox, R.
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Powell, J.
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Waters, C.
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Marshall, J.
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Oates, M.
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Rawson, P.
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Stone, P.
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Zalasiewicz, J.
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Williams, M.
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Smith, A.
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Barry, T.L.
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Coe, A.L.
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Bown, P.R.
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Brenchley, P.
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Cantrill, D.
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Gale, A.
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Gibbard, P.
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Gregory, F.J.
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Hounslow, M.W.
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Kerr, A.C.
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Pearson, P.
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Knox, R.
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Powell, J.
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Waters, C.
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Marshall, J.
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Oates, M.
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Rawson, P.
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Stone, P.
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Zalasiewicz, J., Williams, M., Smith, A., Barry, T.L., Coe, A.L., Bown, P.R., Brenchley, P., Cantrill, D., Gale, A., Gibbard, P., Gregory, F.J., Hounslow, M.W., Kerr, A.C., Pearson, P., Knox, R., Powell, J., Waters, C., Marshall, J., Oates, M., Rawson, P. and Stone, P. (2008) Are we now living in the Anthropocene? GSA Today, 18 (2), 4-8. (doi:10.1130/GSAT01802A.1).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The term Anthropocene, proposed and increasingly employed to denote the current interval of anthropogenic global environmental change, may be discussed on stratigraphic grounds. A case can be made for its consideration as a formal epoch in that, since the start of the Industrial Revolution, Earth has endured changes sufficient to leave a global stratigraphic signature distinct from that of the Holocene or of previous Pleistocene interglacial phases, encompassing novel biotic, sedimentary, and geochemical change. These changes, although likely only in their initial phases, are sufficiently distinct and robustly established for suggestions of a Holocene–Anthropocene boundary in the recent historical past to be geologically reasonable. The boundary may be defined either via Global Stratigraphic Section and Point (“golden spike”) locations or by adopting a numerical date. Formal adoption of this term in the near future will largely depend on its utility, particularly to earth scientists working on late Holocene successions. This datum, from the perspective of the far future, will most probably approximate a distinctive stratigraphic boundary.

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Published date: February 2008

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 50255
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/50255
ISSN: 1052-5173
PURE UUID: a8cc4dce-f929-4321-9178-304dc106a961
ORCID for J. Marshall: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-9242-3646

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Date deposited: 04 Feb 2008
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:35

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Contributors

Author: J. Zalasiewicz
Author: M. Williams
Author: A. Smith
Author: T.L. Barry
Author: A.L. Coe
Author: P.R. Bown
Author: P. Brenchley
Author: D. Cantrill
Author: A. Gale
Author: P. Gibbard
Author: F.J. Gregory
Author: M.W. Hounslow
Author: A.C. Kerr
Author: P. Pearson
Author: R. Knox
Author: J. Powell
Author: C. Waters
Author: J. Marshall ORCID iD
Author: M. Oates
Author: P. Rawson
Author: P. Stone

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