Davor Vidas

Stratigraphic and Earth System approaches to defining the Anthropocene

Stratigraphy provides insights into the evolution and dynamics of the Earth System over its long history. With recent developments in Earth System science, changes in Earth System dynamics can now be observed directly and projected into the near future. An integration of the two approaches provides powerful insights into the nature and significance of contemporary changes to Earth. From both perspectives, the Earth has been pushed out of the Holocene Epoch by human activities, with the mid-20th century a strong candidate for the start date of the Anthropocene, the proposed new epoch in Earth history. Here we explore two contrasting scenarios for the future of the Anthropocene, recognizing that the Earth System has already undergone a substantial transition away from the Holocene state. A rapid shift of societies toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals could stabilize the Earth System in a state with more intense interglacial conditions than in the late Quaternary climate regime and with little further biospheric change. In contrast, a continuation of the present Anthropocene trajectory of growing human pressures will likely lead to biotic impoverishment and a much warmer climate with a significant loss of polar ice.

Colonization of the Americas, ‘Little Ice Age’ climate, and bomb-produced carbon: Their role in defining the Anthropocene

A recently published analysis by Lewis and Maslin (Lewis SL and Maslin MA (2015) Defining the Anthropocene. Nature 519: 171–180) has identified two new potential horizons for the Holocene−Anthropocene boundary: 1610 (associated with European colonization of the Americas), or 1964 (the peak of the excess radiocarbon signal arising from atom bomb tests). We discuss both of these novel suggestions, and consider that there is insufficient stratigraphic basis for the former, whereas placing the latter at the peak of the signal rather than at its inception does not follow normal stratigraphical practice. Wherever the boundary is eventually placed, it should be optimized to reflect stratigraphical evidence with the least possible ambiguity.

The Anthropocene and the international law of the sea

The current law of the sea provides a framework for various specific issues, but is incapable of responding adequately to the overall challenges facing humankind, now conceivably already living in the Anthropocene. The linkages between the development of the law of the sea and the current process towards formal recognition of an Anthropocene epoch are twofold. First, there is a linkage of origin. The ideological foundations of the law of the sea facilitated the emergence of forces that were to lead to the Industrial Revolution and, eventually, to levels of development entailing ever-greater human impacts on the Earth System. Second, there are linkages in interaction. Geological information has prompted key developments in the law of the sea since the introduction of the continental shelf concept in the mid-twentieth century. With the formalization of the Anthropocene epoch, geology might again act as a trigger for new developments needed in the law of the sea. This article explores those two aspects of linkages and examines prospects for further development of the law of the sea framework, through concepts such as the responsibility for the seas as well as those related to new approaches to global sustainability such as the ‘planetary boundaries’.

Scale and diversity of the physical technosphere: A geological perspective

We assess the scale and extent of the physical technosphere, defined here as the summed material output of the contemporary human enterprise. It includes active urban, agricultural and marine components, used to sustain energy and material flow for current human life, and a growing residue layer, currently only in small part recycled back into the active component. Preliminary estimates suggest a technosphere mass of approximately 30 trillion tonnes (Tt), which helps support a human biomass that, despite recent growth, is ~5 orders of magnitude smaller. The physical technosphere includes a large, rapidly growing diversity of complex objects that are potential trace fossils or ‘technofossils’. If assessed on palaeontological criteria, technofossil diversity already exceeds known estimates of biological diversity as measured by richness, far exceeds recognized fossil diversity, and may exceed total biological diversity through Earth’s history. The rapid transformation of much of Earth’s surface mass into the technosphere and its myriad components underscores the novelty of the current planetary transformation.

The UN convention on the law of the sea, the European Union and the rule of law: what is going on in the Adriatic Sea?

In October 2003, Croatia declared an “Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone” in the Adriatic Sea. However, in June 2004 Croatia decided to delay the implementation of that Zone for the European Union (EU) Member States. Then, in December 2006 it decided to implement the Zone fully from 1 January 2008—only to discontinue its application to EU countries from 15 March 2008. The developments and underlying reasons for the changing jurisdictional picture in the Adriatic Sea are the subject of this article. Key Adriatic Sea features, trends in uses of its living resources and maritime space, and resource conservation and marine pollution concerns are presented. Developments leading to recent national legislation and positions on maritime jurisdiction by Croatia as well as Italy and Slovenia are discussed. These regulations, positions and developments are assessed from the perspective of the law of the sea. Relevant policy perspectives, including aspects of EU membership, are included.

Sea-Level Rise and International Law

Since core aspects of international law rely on the general stability of geographical conditions, sea-level rise may bring fundamental challenges and require profound re-examination of currently accepted paradigms of international law. This article briefly addresses three questions: first, are the prospects of sea-level rise already a real concern from the viewpoint of international law? Second, what is the relevance of this perspective for current international law? And third, how should international law in the future approach the phenomenon of sea-level rise?

Consolidation or Deviation? On Trends and Challenges in the Settlement of Maritime Delimitation Disputes by International Courts and Tribunals

The basic consideration in maritime delimitation under international law is the importance accorded to neutral, objective legal criteria to enable predictability, along with an appreciation of the specific circumstances of each case, to achieve an equitable solution. Especially since the first half of the 1990s, international judicial and arbitral practice on maritime dispute settlement has greatly contributed to the interpretation and consolidation of principles of international law and rules for maritime delimitation. Although several longstanding maritime delimitation disputes have recently been resolved, the overall trend has not been a decrease in the number of open and emerging maritime delimitation issues. Some new developments, embodying the demand for unique solutions to be employed in maritime delimitation, confront the trend toward the consolidation of international judicial and arbitral practice.