An assessment of lithostratigraphy for anthropogenic deposits
Open accessAbstract
The deliberate anthropogenic movement of reworked natural and novel manufactured materials represents a novel sedimentary environment associated with mining, waste disposal, construction and urbanization. Anthropogenic deposits display distinctive engineering and environmental properties, and can be of archaeological importance. This paper shows that temporal changes in the scale and lithological character of anthropogenic deposits may be indicative of the Anthropocene. However, the stratigraphy of such deposits is not readily described by existing classification schemes, which do not differentiate separate phases or lithologically distinct deposits beyond a local scale. Lithostratigraphy is a scalable, hierarchical classification used to distinguish successive and lithologically distinct natural deposits. Many natural and anthropogenic deposits exhibit common characteristics; they typically conform to the Law (or Principle) of Superposition and exhibit lithological distinction. The lithostratigraphical classification of surficial anthropogenic deposits may be effective, although defined units may be significantly thinner and far less continuous than those defined for natural deposits. Further challenges include the designation of stratotypes, accommodating the highly diachronous nature of anthropogenic deposits and the common presence of disconformities. International lithostratigraphical guidelines would require significant modification before being effective for the classification of anthropogenic deposits. A practical alternative may be to establish an ‘anthrostratigraphical’ approach, or ‘anthrostratigraphy’.
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Almost all the discarded plastic and aluminium waste in surface sediments date from the mid-twentieth century.
“almost all the discarded plastic and aluminium waste in surface sediments date from the midtwentieth century, for instance;”
From When did the Anthropocene begin? A mid-twentieth century boundary level is stratigraphically optimal (2015) · cites this paper as Ford et al., 2014
The discussion of waste composition (p. 20) says plastics production burgeoned in the 1960s and changed the composition of waste. It does not establish that almost all discarded plastic and aluminium in surface sediments dates from the mid-twentieth century. Figure 10 (p. 19) offers only schematic age ranges for selected materials in European and North American landfill deposits, not that broader dating claim. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredTechnofossils provide annual to decadal stratigraphic resolution, far greater than can be obtained from first and last appearances of fossil taxa.
“these so-called technofossils ( 28 ) provide annual to decadal stratigraphic resolution ( 22, 19 ), far greater than can be obtained from first and last appearances of fossil taxa, which have traditionally provided the most common means of correlating stratal sections ( 29 ).”
From The Anthropocene is functionally and stratigraphically distinct from the Holocene (2016) · cites this paper as [19]
Recent anthropogenic deposits contain the greatest expansion of new minerals since the Great Oxygenation Event at 2400 Ma, accompanied by many new forms of 'rock'.
“Recent anthropogenic deposits - the products of mining, waste disposal (landfill), construction and urbanization (19) - contain the greatest expansion of new minerals since the Great Oxygenation Event at 2400 Ma ( 20 ), accompanied by many new forms of 'rock' in the broad sense of geological materials with the potential for long-term persistence.”
From The Anthropocene is functionally and stratigraphically distinct from the Holocene (2016) · cites this paper as [19]
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- Authors
- Ford, J. R., Price, S. J., Cooper, A. H., & Waters, C. N.
- Affiliations
- British Geological Survey (GB)
- Venue
- Geological Society, London, Special Publications
- Publisher
- Geological Society of London
- Published
- 2014-01
- Volume
- 395
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 55-89
- ISSN
- 0305-8719 (ISSN-L)
- 2041-4927
- OpenAlex
- W2010723609
- Cited by
- 83
- References
- 58
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 13.42
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Locations
- Geological Society London Special Publications (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- NERC Open Research Archive (Natural Environment Research Council) (acceptedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Earth-Surface Processes › Geological formations and processes
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil and Environmental Studies
- Social Sciences › Law › Geology and Environmental Impact Studies
- Keywords
- anthropogenic deposits, lithostratigraphy, stratigraphic classification, Anthropocene, stratotype, disconformity, surficial deposits, waste disposal, mining waste, urbanization
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