A rush to the short-lived Anthropocene?
Published: 25 Nov. 2024, 20:00
Choi Hyeon-chul
The author is an editorial writer of the JoongAng Ilbo.
An important decision in human history was almost made in Busan in August. Before the quadrennial International Geological Congress held at Bexco, there were speculations since last year that an official decision could be made at the event to recognize the current period as the “Anthropocene.” If the congress having the power to name geologic time scales had reached consensus, this line — “The anthropocene defined at the Busan congress” — would have hit the headlines at various global media outlets and the sentence could have been used in textbooks around the world. But the proposal was rejected by 66 percent at an expert group meeting held months before the congress. Should we be disappointed or relieved?
The geologic time scale is defined by fossils. When the Earth’s environment underwent a major change and the underground evidence — such as fossils and sedimentary layers of that time — is markedly different from the previous time, it’s defined as a certain period. The subdivided periods used in the scale are eons, eras, periods, epochs and ages. The current time is called “the Holocene,” the fourth and last epoch of the Neogene period. The Holocene refers to the period starting from 11,700 years ago, when the last ice age ended and civilization blossomed in a mild climate with few changes.
The consensus that the Holocene should end and a new time scale should be defined means a major change is taking place on the planet. Previous changes have been triggered by natural and cosmic events like volcanic eruptions, asteroid impacts and tectonic upheavals, which cause continents to suddenly merge.
But this time, the changes are a result of human activities. Plastics and concrete cover the earth’s surface, temperatures change dramatically and the number of species is rapidly diminishing.
The discussion on adopting the Anthropocene is not just a fringe phenomenon. The only remaining process is strengthening evidence to define the starting point as 1950, a few years after the first nuclear test by the human race. Even more troubling is the prediction that the end of the Anthropocene may come too soon. As the dinosaur extinction took place at the end of Cretaceous Period, a mass extinction of significant species is waiting at the end of the period.
But this planet’s signature species is not having a good time. The two-week-long COP 29, or the United Nations Climate Change Conference, just ended in Baku, Azerbaijan. After an overnight debate, the conference barely managed to reach an agreement one day after the scheduled closing date.
The agreement was to raise an annual $1.3 trillion fund to help developing countries and countries affected by climate change, with developed economies contributing at least $300 billion. This was a compromise between developing countries’ demands for more than $500 billion and developed countries’ upper limit at $250 billion.
Just before the opening ceremony, the World Meteorological Organization released its State of the Global Climate report, which found that this year’s average global temperature is 1.54 degrees Celsius (2.77 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times. Scientists have been warning that a global average temperature increase of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius could be irreversible.
The situation in each individual country is even worse. As war is sweeping across the globe, pessimism is growing. People are saying that they can’t afford to think about the planet’s uncertain future when their immediate concern is survival.
The re-election of Donald Trump, who withdrew from the Paris Agreement during his first term as U.S. president, also signals a difficult future. He repeatedly claimed that climate crisis is a hoax and nominated the CEO of a fossil fuel company as his energy secretary in Trump 2.0. Therefore, expecting the United States to pay a significant portion of the fund is just a pipe dream. It will be fortunate if Trump does not break the agreement.
Meanwhile, climate catastrophe is already a reality. At the end of last month, a major flood in Spain killed more than 220 people. This year, the world is full of floods. The summer in Korea was extremely harsh. Following last year’s green leaves in the fall, this year’s autumn leaves are not very colorful. We may not have many days left to see these autumn colors. Maybe we are saying goodbye to our normal climate.
Translation by the Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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