Massive Acceleration of Human Activity Since 1950 May Herald the Anthropocene

Human activity is now the prime driver of change in the Earth System, which is the sum of our planet's interacting physical, chemical, biological and human processes. And now, scientists have taken a closer look at 24 global indicators that reveal exactly to what extent we've changed our planet.

"It is difficult to overestimate the scale and speed of change," said Will Steffen, the lead author of the new study, in a news release. "In a single lifetime humanity has become a planetary-scale geological force."

Twelve indicators depict human activity, including economic growth (GDP), population, foreign direct investment, energy consumption, telecommunications, transportation and water use. These indicators, in turn, show changes in major environmental components of the Earth System, such as the carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle and biodiversity.

"When we first aggregated these datasets, we expected to see major changes but what surprised us was the timing," said Steffen. "Almost all graphs show the same pattern. The most dramatic shifts have occurred since 1950. We can say that around 1950 was the start of the Great Acceleration. After 1950 you can see that the major Earth System changes became directly linked to changes largely related to the global economic system. This is a new phenomenon and indicates that humanity has a new responsibility at a global level for the planet."

The researchers found strong evidence that in recent decades key components of the Earth System have moved beyond the natural variability seen in the last 12,000 years, a period known as the Holocene. In fact, the Great Acceleration trend supports the idea that Earth has entered a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene.

The underlying drivers of the Great Acceleration are predominantly globalization. About one half of the global population now lives in urban areas, and about a third of the global population has completed the transition from agrarian to industrial societies.

The findings reveal a bit more about how manmade impacts are causing massive changes on the global scale. Currently, the scientists are analyzing the validity of the Anthropocene claim.

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