Human activities have significant global impact on Earth’s ecosystems

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CANADA: Anthropocene is a proposed geologic chronological term for an epoch that begins when human activities have had a significant global impact on the Earth’s ecosystems.
The Anthropocene is a term describing a geological epoch that begins when humans began having a significant impact on Earth’s ecosystems. It may sound somewhat ironic but, according to the authors of a new paper, that era begins in 1610 with a marked drop in atmospheric carbon dioxide.
For a period of time to be marked as a geological epoch, two things are required. The first requirement is that lasting changes to the Earth need to be documented.
The second is that scientists must be able to point to a date that environmental change has been captured by natural material. This could include rocks, ocean sediment, ancient ice such as that found in glaciers or some other material.
Previous epochs were marked by things like sustained volcanic activity, the shifting of the continents and meteorite strike.
The study, published in the journal nature, examines the environmental impact of human activity during the last 50,000 years, and looks for impacts that meet the two criteria for an epoch.
One possible start for the Anthropocene was 1964. That year saw a spike in radioactive fallout due to an increase in nuclear weapons testing. The fallout is found in many geological deposits. The researchers not that by the 1960s, the human impact on Earth’s ecosystems was pronounced and that nuclear war could dramatically alter the Earth over the long term. However, to date there has been no nuclear war and nuclear weapons have not substantially altered the Earth.
The researchers also considered the late 18th century, when the industrial revolution led to a substantial increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide. That increase will also have a substantial ecosystems. However, it is not clear how long that change will last because it depends, in part, on how long the increase in carbon dioxide is allowed to continue for. The researchers also could not find a ‘golden spike’ to mark the start of the Epoch because the increase in carbon dioxide was gradual.