{"id":29984,"date":"2020-05-26T11:17:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-26T11:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/?post_type=research_project&#038;p=29984"},"modified":"2020-07-07T14:08:50","modified_gmt":"2020-07-07T14:08:50","slug":"anthropocene","status":"publish","type":"research_project","link":"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/","title":{"rendered":"Anthropocene"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t\t<section class=\"hero-section hero-section-with-social\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hero-info-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hero-info\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1>Anthropocene<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>BGS Research<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<div class=\"social-wrap social-wrap-inline-them\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"sea-background-f\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>Share this article<\/span><a target=\"_blank\"  href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/\"><span class=\"icon-facebook\"><span class=\"hidden\">Facebook<\/span><\/span><\/a><a target=\"_blank\"  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Anthropocene&#038;url=https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/\"><span class=\"icon-twitter\"><span class=\"hidden\">Twitter<\/span><\/span><\/a><a   onclick=\"javascript:void( (function() {var e=document.createElement('script' );e.setAttribute('type','text\/javascript' );e.setAttribute('charset','UTF-8' );e.setAttribute('src','\/\/assets.pinterest.com\/js\/pinmarklet.js?r='+Math.random()*99999999);document.body.appendChild(e)})());\"  href=\"javascript:void(0);\"><span class=\"icon-pinterest\"><span class=\"hidden\">Pinterest<\/span><\/span><\/a><a target=\"_blank\"  href=\"https:\/\/wa.me?text=https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/\"><span class=\"icon-whatsapp\"><span class=\"hidden\">WhatsApp<\/span><\/span><\/a><a   href=\"mailto:?subject=Anthropocene&#038;body=The%20Anthropocene%20is%20a%20newly%20proposed%20geological%20time-unit,%20first%20suggested%20in%20the%20year%202000.%20It%20is%20as%20significant%20as%20the%20discovery%20of%20plate%20tectonics.%20(https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/)\"><span class=\"icon-mail\"><span class=\"hidden\">Email<\/span><\/span><\/a><a href=\"#\" data-copy=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/anthropocene\/\" class=\"copy-url-on-click\"><span class=\"icon-link\"><span class=\"hidden\">Copy Link<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\n\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-bgs-blocks-content-container content-section\"><div class=\"container\"><div class=\"row\"><div class=\"col-12\">\n<p>&#8216;The Anthropocene&#8217; is a newly proposed geological time unit: the age of humans. The term was suggested in the year 2000 in the middle of a committee meeting by Paul Crutzen, a Nobel prize-winning atmospheric geochemist (carrying on the grand tradition started by William Smith of contributing a fundamental change to the discipline of geology from outside its heady ranks). <\/p>\n\n\n<figure  class=\"img-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Tokyo_Sky_Tree_Terrence_Starkey_Unsplash-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur\" alt=\"Tokyo Sky Tree\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Tokyo_Sky_Tree_Terrence_Starkey_Unsplash-960x497.jpg\" \/><figcaption class=\"caption \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/themes\/bgs\/img\/info-caption.svg\" alt=\"Information icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-text\"><p>Tokyo Sky Tree, Tokyo: a likely future Anthropocene deposit and a present-day Anthropocene processing mill. \u00a9 Terence Starkey\/Unsplash.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>Shortly afterwards, a group of stratigraphers \u2014 gatekeepers of Earth\u2019s chronology \u2014 led by Jan Zalasiewicz (a one-time BGS palaeontologist now based at the University of Leicester) developed the <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/quaternary.stratigraphy.org\/working-groups\/anthropocene\/\" target=\"_blank\">Anthropocene Working Group<\/a> (AWG). The AWG was ratified in 2008 as a formal component of the Subcommision on Quaternary Stratigraphy within the <a href=\"https:\/\/stratigraphy.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">International Commission on Stratigraphy<\/a>. It was charged with assessing whether there is a geological case for the existence of the Anthropocene.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure  class=\"img-wrap\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/CoastOfMaheSeychelles.jpg\" data-toggle=\"lightbox\" data-footer=\"&lt;p&gt;Reclaimed land along the eastern coast of Mahe, Seychelles. \u00a9 Gareth Jenkins.&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-gallery=\"gallery_37827\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/CoastOfMaheSeychelles-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur\" alt=\"Made ground on the coast of Mahe, Seychelles\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/CoastOfMaheSeychelles.jpg\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"caption sm-line\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/themes\/bgs\/img\/info-caption.svg\" alt=\"Information icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-text\"><p>Reclaimed land along the eastern coast of Mahe, Seychelles. \u00a9 Gareth Jenkins.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"expand-box expand-box-top\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/CoastOfMaheSeychelles.jpg\" data-toggle=\"lightbox\" data-footer=\"&lt;p&gt;Reclaimed land along the eastern coast of Mahe, Seychelles. \u00a9 Gareth Jenkins.&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-gallery=\"gallery_37827\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/themes\/bgs\/img\/expand.svg\" alt=\"Expand icon\"><\/a><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>Since then, the Anthropocene has made it to the cover of <em>The<\/em> <em>Economist<\/em> (<a aria-label=\"undefined (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.economist.com\/leaders\/2011\/05\/26\/welcome-to-the-anthropocene\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Welcome to the Anthropocene<\/a>, May, 2011); the concept (called &#8216;Nature Is Over&#8217;) was included in <em>Time<\/em> magazine\u2019s <a aria-label=\"undefined (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"http:\/\/content.time.com\/time\/covers\/0,16641,20120312,00.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Top 10 ideas that are changing your life<\/a> of 2012; it has featured in the farrago of art, architecture and geology in the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, in 2014, and become a feature documentary film in 2018, &#8216;<em>Anthropocene: The Human Epoch<\/em>&#8216;, from the multiple-award winning team of Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky. A Google Scholar search will reveal close to 150\u00a0000 results; three new academic journals have formed as a direct consequence of the concept, and the idea has attracted philosophers, political scientists, sociologists, environmental historians, bloggers, journalists, lawyers and even other geologists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2016, the AWG presented the preliminary summary of evidence and interim recommendations at the 35th International Geological Congress in Cape Town, South Africa. Together with results of voting by members of the AWG, the majority held the Anthropocene to be stratigraphically real and recommends formalisation at epoch\/series rank based on a mid-20th century boundary.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure  class=\"img-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Anthropocene_Sediment_Antoine_Giret_Unsplash-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur\" alt=\"Anthropocene sediment\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Anthropocene_Sediment_Antoine_Giret_Unsplash-960x497.jpg\" \/><figcaption class=\"caption \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/themes\/bgs\/img\/info-caption.svg\" alt=\"Information icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-text\"><p>Plastic and other waste acting as a human-made, Anthropocene sediment. \u00a9 Antoine Giret\/Unsplash.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s probably fair to say that no single geological phenomenon has resonated in so many communities, with so many people, and in so many different ways. The discovery of plate tectonics was the last time geology made a significant change to our understanding of how the earth works. The Anthropocene is no less significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here at the BGS, a lot of our work is inevitably about Anthropocene processes and the generation of Anthropocene materials. The role of humans as geological agents and agents of environmental change is front and centre within the portfolio of BGS Global projects, all of which are carried out in the context of the UN Sustainability Development Goals and driven by the UK Office of Development Assistance guidelines. See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geological-research\/bgs-global\/\">BGS Global<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure  class=\"img-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Consolidated_Waste_Bas_Emmen_Unsplash-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur\" alt=\"Potential Anthropocene deposit\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Consolidated_Waste_Bas_Emmen_Unsplash-960x497.jpg\" \/><figcaption class=\"caption \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/themes\/bgs\/img\/info-caption.svg\" alt=\"Information icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"caption-text\"><p>Consolidated waste paper destined for a landfill, which may eventually become an Anthropocene deposit. \u00a9 Bas Emmen\/Unsplash.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<div  class=\"accordions\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"acc-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"acc-top secondary-background icon-arrow button no-btn\"><span class=\"button-content\" tabindex=\"-1\">References<\/span><\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"acc-body sea-background-e\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theanthropocene.org\/film\/\">Anthropocene: The Human Epoch<\/a> (film).<\/p>\n<p>Ellis, M A. 2018. <a href=\"http:\/\/nora.nerc.ac.uk\/id\/eprint\/519915\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Engaging the human process in earth sciences<\/a>, <em>Research Features<\/em>, Vol. 125, 6\u20139.<\/p>\n<p>Ellis, M A, and Trachtenberg, Z. 2013. <a href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1002\/2013EF000191\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Which Anthropocene is it to be? Beyond geology to a moral and public discourse.<\/a>\u00a0<em>Earth\u2019s Future<\/em>, Vol. 2, 122\u2013125.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas, J A, and Ellis, M A. 2020 (in press). <a href=\"https:\/\/www.asiaglobalonline.hku.hk\/anthropocene-climate-change\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Why &#8216;Anthropocene&#8217; is not the same as &#8216;Climate Change&#8217; and why it matters for Asia<\/a>. <em>Environmental History<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Waters, C N, Zalasiewicz, J, Summerhayes, C, Barnosky, A D, Poirier, C,\u00a0 Ga<span class=\"name\">\u0142<\/span>uszka,\u00a0 A, Cearreta, A, Edgeworth, M, Ellis, E C, Ellis, M, Jeandel, C, Leinfelder, R, McNeill, J R, Richtern, D dB, Steffen, W, Syvitski, J, Vidas, D, Wagreich, M, Williams, M, Zhisheng, A, Grinevald, J, Odada, E, Oreskes, N, and Wolfe, A J. 2016. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1126\/science.aad2622\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Anthropocene is functionally and stratigraphically distinct from the Holocene.<\/a>\u00a0<em>Science<\/em>, Vol. 351(6269).<\/p>\n<p>Zalasiewicz, J, Waters, C N, Summerhayes, C P, Wolfe, A P, Barnosky, A D, Cearreta, A, Crutzen, P, Ellis, E, Fairchild, I J, Ga<span class=\"name\">\u0142<\/span>uszka,\u00a0 A, Haff, P, Hajdas, I, Head, M J, Ivar do Sul, J A, Jeandel, C, Leinfelder, R, McNeill, J R, Neal, C, Odada, E, Oreskes, N, Steffen, W, Syvitski, J, Vidas, D, Wagreich, M, and Williams, M. 2017. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.ancene.2017.09.001\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Working Group on the Anthropocene: summary of evidence and interim recommendations<\/a>.\u00a0<em>Anthropocene<\/em>, Vol. 19, 55\u201360.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<section   id=\"latest-content-9514-block_5e7b0d7d9c15e\" class=\"grid-section  primary-background   \" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row header-of-section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2>You may also be interested in:<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row grid-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t<div class=\"cards cards-orizontal-sm  cards-find-more  cards-bordered\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/urban-geoscience\/\" class=\"media-wrap\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/feature_urban_pexels_373893-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur wp-post-image\" alt=\"Cityscape by Burst\/Pexels\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/feature_urban_pexels_373893.jpg\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"info-wrap\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"info\">\n\t\t\t\t<h4><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/urban-geoscience\/\">Urban geoscience<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The BGS urban geoscience research group provides solutions for urban land-use planning and sustainable development.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/urban-geoscience\/\">Show more<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-lg-6 col-12\">\n\t<div class=\"cards cards-orizontal-sm  cards-find-more  cards-bordered\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/international-catchment-observatories\/\" class=\"media-wrap\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Hoa_Binh_Dam_Da_River_Feature_Mike_Ellis_BGS_UKRI-150x150.jpg\" class=\"lazy-blur wp-post-image\" alt=\"Hoa Binh Dam, Da River\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Hoa_Binh_Dam_Da_River_Feature_Mike_Ellis_BGS_UKRI.jpg\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"info-wrap\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"info\">\n\t\t\t\t<h4><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/international-catchment-observatories\/\">International catchment observatories<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p> The BGS is currently setting up a pilot-scale observatory to serve Hanoi, Vietnam, in the context of hazards and resilience to those hazards. <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.ac.uk\/geology-projects\/international-catchment-observatories\/\">Show more<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Anthropocene is a newly proposed geological time-unit, first suggested in the year 2000. It is as significant as the discovery of plate tectonics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":30172,"parent":0,"menu_order":55,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"17336,15901,37470,16687,9854,37491","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"tags":[],"region":[9],"topic":[26,33,20,32,23,25,30],"purpose":[],"area":[16,17,18,19],"challenge":[49,51],"challenge_topic":[135,138,136,139],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Anthropocene - British Geological Survey<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Anthropocene is a newly proposed geological time-unit, first suggested in the year 2000. 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