For the past two decades, geologists have wrestled with whether humans have changed the planet enough to kick off a completely new epoch in geological time called the Anthropocene. Now, a subcommittee of Earth scientists has reportedly made a decision: No, we haven’t.
The results mean we’re still living in the Holocene, an epoch that started with the end of the last ice age 11,700 years ago.
The Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy (SQS) voted on the proposed Anthropocene epoch over the past month, and the results were released to subcommittee members on Tuesday, the New York Times reported. The newspaper saw the internal document listing the votes: 12 against, four in favour and two abstentions.
The SQS is a constituent body of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), which decides what divisions are included on the official geologic time scale, and when they begin and end.
A brief history of the Anthropocene
The proposal for the Anthropocene epoch was first popularized by the Dutch Nobel-prize-winning chemist, Paul Crutzen, in the early 2000s. In 2009, the ICS convened a group of geologists, paleontologists and other scientists called the Anthropocene Working Group.
“We were asked to determine whether or not there was evidence in the geologic record of that shift in the Earth system that this atmospheric chemist threw out there,” said Francine McCarthy, a professor of Earth sciences at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont., who was a group member. “And our answer was a resounding yes.”
The scientists in the working group found evidence that the epoch started in 1950. That’s when they say human impact on the planet accelerated, as seen in plastics, elemental aluminum (which is found only as ores in nature), black carbon from fossil fuel combustion and plutonium from hydrogen bomb tests, chosen as the “primary” marker for the start of the Anthropocene.
Some of the best preserved evidence was found in layers of sediment at the bottom of Crawford Lake in Milton, Ont., which was named last year as the proposed “golden spike” marking the start of the new proposed epoch.
WATCH | This Ontario lake could help scientists define our next geological era:
This Ontario lake could help scientists define our next geological era
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A group of scientists is pushing to have a new geological epoch declared, something that only happens every few million years, or longer. Named the ‘Anthropocene,’ they say it is driven by human activity.
‘Validity of the vote’ questioned
A statement from the Anthropocene Working Group emailed to CBC News on Tuesday said “there remain several issues that need to be resolved about the validity of the vote” and that until they’re resolved, “it would be inappropriate to talk directly on this matter at present.”
McCarthy said the group hasn’t received any feedback on the evidence that was voted on — not even in the New York Times article.
“At least I would have liked to have read in the article that they found this unconvincing,” she said.
Instead, subcommittee members pointed out that human impacts began well before 1950, with events such as the onset of agriculture or the Industrial Revolution.
What others scientists think
Some Canadian scientists who study the geological record in sediments and rocks aren’t surprised by the results of the vote.
Joe Desloges, a professor in the geography and Earth sciences departments at the University of Toronto, said scientists have been debating the Anthropocene for well over a decade. “Which means it’s not a slam dunk.”
He said he hadn’t anticipated the big majority of “no” votes. But he added that the geological time scale is typically set based on records in solid rocks, not sediments like those in Crawford Lake. “I think people are kind of skeptical about the permanency of it.”
Crawford Lake is shown in Milton, Ont., in July 2023. The lake has been chosen as the ‘golden spike’ to mark the start of a proposed new epoch, the Anthropocene. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press)
Boundaries between epochs also tend to represent truly massive geological change. “Our last boundary, between the Holocene and the Pleistocene, was almost one-third of this planet being covered by ice,” Desloges said. “The sheer magnitude and scale of that tends to be what people are looking for when they define these boundaries.”
John-Paul Zonneveld, a professor of Earth sciences who studies the boundary between the Permian and Triassic epochs at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, said he thinks the subcommittee made the right decision.
The events that kick off a new epoch typically take place over millions of years, he said. That was the case for the Permian-Triassic boundary, which involved a mass extinction in two events — one that happened before and one that happened after the official line between the two epochs.
The 11,700 years between the Holocene and the proposed Anthropocene would be a “flip of an eyelash” — so short as to be impossible to see on that time scale, Zonneveld said.
Humans’ huge impact on the planet remains clear
All three scientists interviewed for this article emphasized that regardless of the vote, humans have changed this planet in huge ways.
Zonneveld said he understands why there is so much debate about the Anthropocene.
“It does bring attention to global change, global warming. These are important issues, absolutely. But from a stratigraphic standpoint, does it help in any way? No.”
Brock University’s McCarthy said when she first started working at Crawford Lake, she wasn’t convinced it would be a great record of humanity’s impact, but over time, seeing the evidence pile up, “I became a convert.”
She said seeing a new line on the geological time scale isn’t what she wants the most. “My major goal is to have as many humans pay attention to the data as humanly possible.”
Francine McCarthy of Brock University points at the layer of sediment in a Crawford Lake mud core that shows the global plutonium spike from nuclear weapons testing that marks the beginning of the proposed Anthropocene epoch. Crawford Lake is one of nine sites around the world vying to become the official boundary layer that best represents the global transition from the Holocene epoch to the Anthropocene. (Mercury Films Inc./Nick de Pencier)
What does this mean for the Anthropocene?
The debate over the Anthropocene isn’t over yet. As of Tuesday, the results of the vote hadn’t been officially announced.
And the subcommittee hadn’t dealt with the second part of the Anthropocene Working Group’s proposal — that the first subdivision, or age of the Anthropocene, be called the Crawfordian, after Crawford Lake.
Could the ICS still consider a new age called the Crawfordian, even if it’s not part of a new epoch? McCarthy said she doesn’t know. “I hope that they do,” she said.
Desloges said he thinks the debate over the Anthropocene will continue, and he noted that the Earth has 4.5 billion years of history behind it. “If anyone is in a rush to identify a new epoch, we’ve got a bit of time.”
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.
Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.
She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.
Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.
“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.
It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.
Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.
“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.
He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.
Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
