TY - JOUR
T1 - Response to Merritts et al. (2023)
T2 - The Anthropocene is complex. Defining it is not
AU - Waters, Colin N.
AU - Head, Martin J.
AU - Zalasiewicz, Jan
AU - McCarthy, Francine M.G.
AU - Wing, Scott L.
AU - Haff, Peter K.
AU - Williams, Mark
AU - Barnosky, Anthony D.
AU - Fiałkiewicz-Kozieł, Barbara
AU - Leinfelder, Reinhold
AU - McNeill, J. R.
AU - Rose, Neil L.
AU - Steffen, Will
AU - Summerhayes, Colin P.
AU - Wagreich, Michael
AU - An, Zhisheng
AU - Cearreta, Alejandro
AU - Cundy, Andrew B.
AU - Fairchild, Ian J.
AU - Gałuszka, Agnieszka
AU - Hajdas, Irka
AU - Han, Yongming
AU - Ivar do Sul, Juliana A.
AU - Jeandel, Catherine
AU - Syvitski, Jaia
AU - Turner, Simon D.
AU - Zinke, Jens
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors
PY - 2023/3
Y1 - 2023/3
N2 - Merritts et al. (2023) misrepresent Paul Crutzen's Anthropocene concept as encompassing all significant anthropogenic impacts, extending back many millennia. Crutzen's definition reflects massively enhanced, much more recent human impacts that transformed the Earth System away from the stability of Holocene conditions. His concept of an epoch (hence the ‘cene’ suffix) is more consistent with the strikingly distinct sedimentary record accumulated since the mid-20th century. Waters et al. (2022) highlighted a Great Acceleration Event Array (GAEA) of stratigraphic event markers that are indeed diverse and complex but also tightly clustered around 1950 CE, allowing ultra-high resolution characterization and correlation of a clearly recognisable Anthropocene chronostratigraphic base. The ‘Anthropocene event’ offered by Merritts et al., following Gibbard et al. (2021, 2022), is a highly nuanced concept that obfuscates the transformative human impact of the chronostratigraphic Anthropocene. Waters et al. (2022) restricted the meaning of the term ‘event’ in geology to conform with usual Quaternary practice and improve its utility. They simultaneously recognized an evidence-based Anthropogenic Modification Episode that is more explicitly defined than the highly interpretive interdisciplinary ‘Anthropocene event’ of Gibbard et al. (2021, 2022). The advance of science is best served through clearly developed concepts supported by tightly circumscribed terminology; indeed, improvements to stratigraphy over recent decades have been achieved through increasingly precise definitions, especially for chronostratigraphic units, and not by retaining vague terminology.
AB - Merritts et al. (2023) misrepresent Paul Crutzen's Anthropocene concept as encompassing all significant anthropogenic impacts, extending back many millennia. Crutzen's definition reflects massively enhanced, much more recent human impacts that transformed the Earth System away from the stability of Holocene conditions. His concept of an epoch (hence the ‘cene’ suffix) is more consistent with the strikingly distinct sedimentary record accumulated since the mid-20th century. Waters et al. (2022) highlighted a Great Acceleration Event Array (GAEA) of stratigraphic event markers that are indeed diverse and complex but also tightly clustered around 1950 CE, allowing ultra-high resolution characterization and correlation of a clearly recognisable Anthropocene chronostratigraphic base. The ‘Anthropocene event’ offered by Merritts et al., following Gibbard et al. (2021, 2022), is a highly nuanced concept that obfuscates the transformative human impact of the chronostratigraphic Anthropocene. Waters et al. (2022) restricted the meaning of the term ‘event’ in geology to conform with usual Quaternary practice and improve its utility. They simultaneously recognized an evidence-based Anthropogenic Modification Episode that is more explicitly defined than the highly interpretive interdisciplinary ‘Anthropocene event’ of Gibbard et al. (2021, 2022). The advance of science is best served through clearly developed concepts supported by tightly circumscribed terminology; indeed, improvements to stratigraphy over recent decades have been achieved through increasingly precise definitions, especially for chronostratigraphic units, and not by retaining vague terminology.
KW - Anthropocene
KW - Anthropogenic Modification Episode
KW - Chronostratigraphy
KW - Event stratigraphy
KW - Great Acceleration Event Array
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85149669319&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.earscirev.2023.104335
DO - 10.1016/j.earscirev.2023.104335
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85149669319
VL - 238
JO - Earth-Science Reviews
JF - Earth-Science Reviews
SN - 0012-8252
M1 - 104335
ER -