Game Changer in Soil Science. The Anthropocene in soil science and pedology.

Abstract

The venerable science of pedology, initiated in the 19th century as the study of the natural factors of soil formation, is adapting to the demands of the Anthropocene, the geologic time during which planet Earth and its soils are transitioning from natural to human‐natural systems. With vast areas of soils intensively managed, the future of pedology lies with a renewed science that can be called anthropedology that builds on the pedology of the past but proceeds from “human as outsider” to “human as insider.” In other words, the human in pedology must shift from being a soil‐disturbing to soil‐forming agent. Pedology is well prepared to respond to the challenges of the Anthropocene, given the decades of research on human‐soil relations throughout human history and throughout the period of the Great Acceleration (Steffen et al., [76]). However, quantitative understanding of soil responses to the diversity of human forcings remains elementary and needs remedy.

Back to the future- Conservative grassland management for Anthropocene soils in the changed landscapes of Uruguay?

“…This unprecedented transformational force is intimately related to the expansion of societies and its productive frontiers, causing a loss of biodiversity, habitat and soil degradation and, consequently, to ecosystem modification (Foley et al, 2005, Borrelli et al, 2017. In this context, soil sciences have transitioned from studies on natural soil formation to the science of 'anthropedogenesis' (Richter, 2020), focussing on the 'soils of the anthropocene' that are predominately agricultural (51 Mio. km 2 ) or urban (1.5 Mio km 2 ; FAO, 2019).…”

Acceleration of Soil Erosion by Different Land Uses in Arid Lands above 10Be Natural Background Rates: Case Study in the Sonoran Desert, USA

“…The concept of an Anthropocene epoch, starting with the onset of a significant human impact on the Earth, has been debated in soils [118] and geomorphological scholarship [119], with the hypothesis of a "great acceleration" [120] associated with anthropogenic activities. Here, for the first time, we place specific numbers on the acceleration of erosion above natural background rates in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona, United States from grazing, wildfires, and urbanization.…”

The Anthropocene: Comparing Its Meaning in Geology (Chronostratigraphy) with Conceptual Approaches Arising in Other Disciplines

“…One might consider a capitalized “Anthropocene” as representing the tightly defined geological, chronostratigraphic concept, with an uncapitalized “anthropocene” being used for broader interpretations (Richter, 2020; Ruddiman et al., 2015). This kind of distinction is used in geology, for instance to differentiate between the meaning of a sedimentary bed (informal) and a specific, defined lithostratigraphic “bed” which has formal meaning and is capitalized, for example, the Ludlow Bone Bed.…”