Japan sea sludge tells story of human impact on Earth

Not really a surprise sadly. Japanese beaches are gross, the coast line is littered with trash. Take a ride on any railway that runs along the sea - the Uetsu Line is a good example - garbage strewn everywhere.

Very interesting article, it can make people have contradictory feelings about how human civilizations have even a geological impact that can be measured, too unfortunate that frequently this impact is negative.

Similar story on the front page of the BBC today, talking about Canada, with some quite striking video showing identification of periods by sediment.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-66132769

@factchecker

I've found the Japan sea side to be like that, particularly Niigata where I actually found garbage that appeared to come from Korea. But the pacific side, in my experience, is beautifully clean.

Altering like dumping radioactive water perhaps? Future humans will be able to do the same.

And where’s the point? Every living creature leaves some impact on this planet in relation to its number, size and capabilities. An ant hill, filled honeycombs, shell sediments in sea, coal seams made originally from trees, dinosaur footprints , dove excrement on cars or your clothes, an endless list, which of course then also contains the related and massive impact made by us humans.

@sven asai

the point is that modern man is altering the earth in ways that are harmful and irreversible. This new Anthropocene era could very well be the end of all eras.

Unfortunately science can provide no examples great enough to disrupt the faith that climate change deniers worship.

Thanks a whole bunch Japan for founding it - then...clean up time! Problem solved.

Human may be killing planet earth, but AI robots have no worries.

@Vreth

Nope.Pacific down here is just as bad,just depends on prevailing wind and swell direction seasonally.

Uetsu Line? You mean the Uetsu Main Line, which runs from Niigata Prefecture to Akita Prefecture?

At least it's not dirty anywhere as far as I can see the recent YouTube videos.

To begin with, the Tohoku region has a small population, so there is no place overflowing with garbage. It's a story that can't be believed at all without concrete images and videos.

Every year tons of garbage written in Korean wash ashore in Shimane prefecture.

Disposal costs are also taxes, so I would like Korea to stop illegal dumping of garbage in the ocean. but they can't

The natural cycles of the earth.

The natural cycles of the earth.

What are? Plutonium contamination? Microplastics?

What are? Plutonium contamination? Microplastics?

Not likely to have an answer for this, people that baselessly claim the opposite of the article probably can't make sense of their contradictions.

The path to agree the new era has been long and controversial, with scientists wrangling for years over whether the Holocene epoch that began 11,700 years ago has really been replaced by a new period defined by human impact on the Earth.

Interesting how the experts can conflict on these scientific matters.

Experts can disagree in details like denominations, that does nothing to support a claim that is contradicted explicitly by them, for example that this sediment do not indicate any natural process but instead what humans have caused in the planet.