Archaeologists Say the ‘Anthropocene’ Is Here—But It Began Long Ago

Balter, Michael

doi:10.1126/science.340.6130.261

Cited by 75 publications

(35 citation statements)

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“…Evidence for this was obtained during the study of the trench siege in Tell es-Safi/Gath, and in the mapping of modern plant cover in abandoned agricultural terraces in the Judean Shephelah (Fig. 6) (Ackermann et al, 2004;2013). In both of these cases, the soil surface was altered by ancient anthropogenic activities.…”

Section: Floral Composition and Distribution Current Plant Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The timing of the epoch's onset is currently under debate, though many have set the late 18 th -19 th century Industrial Revolution as its starting point (e.g., Ruddiman, 2003;Balter, 2013;Foley et al, 2013;Braje & Erlandson, 2014;Voosen, 2016), and the term has yet to be officially accepted by the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS; Sample, 2014). However, it has already been adopted de facto by many members of the scientific community, as demonstrated by the establishment of new journals (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Paleo-Anthropocene and the Genesis of the Current Landscape of Israel

Ackermann

Maeir

Frumin

et al. 2017

Journal of Landscape Ecology

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Worldwide, human impact on natural landscapes has intensified since prehistoric times, and this is well documented in the global archaeological record. The period between the earliest hominids and the Industrial Revolution of the late 18-19 th centuries is known as the Paleo-Anthropocene. The current study reviews key geoarchaeological, floral and faunal factors of the Paleo-Anthropocene in Israel, an area that has undergone human activities in various intensities since prehistoric times. It discusses significant human imprints on these three features in the Israeli landscape, demonstrating that its current form is almost entirely anthropogenic. Moreover, some of the past physical changes still dynamically shape Israel's zoological, archaeological and geomorphic landscape today. It is hoped that insights from this article might aid in guiding present-day management strategies of undeveloped areas through renewal of human activity guided by traditional knowledge.

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Section: Floral Composition and Distribution Current Plant Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Paleo-Anthropocene and the Genesis of the Current Landscape of Israel

Ackermann

Maeir

Frumin

et al. 2017

Journal of Landscape Ecology

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“…Archaeologists and specialists in long-term human-environment interaction agree and emphasize that the onand off-site archaeological record is concrete evidence of the extent and intensity in which people have left their mark in a geologically identifiable way (see papers in this special volume, as well as Balée and Erickson, 2006;Balter, 2013;Butzer, 1996;Certini and Scalenghe, 2011;Crumley, 1993;Graham, 1998;Kirch, 2005;Rick et al, 2013). The issue at stake is not whether the Anthropocene is valid.…”

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confidence: 99%

Por el camino verde: Long-term tropical socioecosystem dynamics and the Anthropocene as seen from Puerto Rico

Rivera-Collazo

2015

The Holocene

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The Anthropocene concept brings forth the role of humans as an increasingly important force affecting natural processes in our planet and leaving an identifiable anthropogenic marker in the geological record. Archaeologists and specialists in long-term human-environment interaction agree and emphasize that the onand off-site archaeological record is concrete evidence of the extent and intensity in which people have left their mark in a geologically identifiable way (see papers in this special volume, as well as Balée and Erickson, 2006;Balter, 2013;Butzer, 1996;Certini and Scalenghe, 2011;Crumley, 1993;Graham, 1998;Kirch, 2005;Rick et al., 2013). The issue at stake is not whether the Anthropocene is valid. The relevant question is when does the Anthropocene start? If we are judging the Anthropocene as a time when people caused enough impact as to leave a mark of their presence that could serve as a global indicator of the beginning of a new era (Crutzen, 2002;Crutzen and Steffen, 2003;Crutzen and Stroemer, 2000;Steffen et al., 2007Steffen et al., , 2011Zalasiewicz et al., 2011), is the suggested date of the Industrial Revolution valid? Is it the 'Great Acceleration'? Or is it the earliest physical evidence of human agency affecting other spheres: atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere (see Certini and Scalenghe, 2011;Erlandson and Braje, 2013;Foley et al., 2013;Rick et al., 2013)?In this article, the sedimentological and biotic records of Puerto Rico as an oceanic island in the Caribbean are evaluated to measure the intensity of human impact and environmental transformation through time. Oceanic islands and human settlement: What could we expectIslands are traditionally considered sensitive to environmental and climate change, especially tropical islands where extinction of species is of serious concern (Fitzpatrick and Keegan, 2007;Rick et al., 2013). The Caribbean Islands are defined as biodiversity hotspots (Helmer et al., 2002;Myers et al., 2000), where richness in species and ecosystem diversity as well as high levels of endemism are considered highly valuable, and conservation Por el camino verde: Long-term tropical socioecosystem dynamics and the Anthropocene as seen from Puerto Rico Isabel C Rivera-Collazo AbstractIslands are traditionally considered sensitive to environment and climate change. The Caribbean Islands are a biodiversity hotspot, where conservation efforts should be a priority. However, the archaeological record suggests that the biotic characteristics of the islands, even within nature or forests reserves, are strongly shaped by thousands of years of intense human activity. This presents an issue for conservation efforts because defining what should be preserved and what should be reconstructed is not straightforward. Using Puerto Rico as case study, this article explores how socioecosystem dynamics influenced the biotic characteristics of the island at specific archaeological periods and to what extent these processes have affected the environmental resources on the island today. C...

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“…A formal proposal to name a new timeframe within the Geological Time Scale, the ''Anthropocene'' (Crutzen and Stoermer 2000), is in development for consideration by the International Commission on Stratigraphy (Zalasiewicz et al 2011). This proposed geologic timeframe recognizes the undeniable role of human activity in affecting Earth's functioning, and is now widely debated among academic scientists, practitioners, and the public alike (e.g., Balter 2013).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%