The Anthropocene: A new epoch of geological time caused by humans
We are pleased to say that the AGU have accepted our proposed title “The Anthropocene:
A new epoch of geological time caused by humans” for their Fall Meeting in San
Francisco, 15-19 December 2008. We hope that it will generate lively debate.
The link to the meeting is http://www.agu.org/meetings/fm08/?content=program
Our session can be found at:
http://www.agu.org/meetings/fm08/?content=search&show=detail&sessid=288
We would be delighted if you would consider contributing to this session.
We look forward to your reply
Jan Zalasiewicz & Mark Williams (Leicester) and Andrew C. Kerr (Cardiff) under the
auspices of the Stratigraphy Commission of the Geological Society of London, and Alan
Haywood (Leeds).
The meeting will be co-sponsored by the International Subcommission on Quaternary
Stratigraphy
The session outline is:
In 2000 the chemist Paul Crutzen suggested that we are now living in a new geological
interval of time that is dominated by human activities. He termed this the Anthropocene.
Since then the term (currently informal) has been widely quoted by a range of earth and
environmental scientists, has attracted much public attention, and has been the focus of
suggestions that it be formally incorporated into the Geological Time Scale. This session
is aimed at examining the nature, scale and status of the Anthropocene as a potential new
geological Epoch. Key themes to be addressed are the effects of anthropogenic influence
on global change (e.g. sea level rise, ice sheet stability, ocean acidification, biodiversity,
landscape modification) and how this will be reflected in a distinctive geological record.
We also wish to compare the current degree and rate of environmental change, caused by
anthropogenic processes, with some of the great environmental perturbations of the
geological past. Can meaningful comparisons of this type be made, and can the scale and
rate of past and current global change – biological, physical, chemical, be quantified?
Would more precise definition and formalization of the term ‘Anthropocene’ serve a
useful purpose for earth scientists? And how could this be defined: within a sedimentary
sequence or ice core record; by choosing a date such as the year 1800 near the start of the
Industrial Revolution; or perhaps 1815, the year of the great Tambora eruption that left a
widespread stratigraphic marker? We seek submissions to this session from the earth
sciences community, including those modeling earth climates of the past or future, those
researching the effects of rapid global warming, and those interested in the definition of
major geological time boundaries and their sedimentological, biological and chemical
signature in the rock record.