anthropogenic

Limestone grasslands as part of anthropogenic landscapes ( juniper heather in the Eifel )

The adjective anthropogenic (from ancient Greek anthropos "human", with the verb stem genetically "created") refers to a technical term for by the people Incurred, Caused, Produced or Affected. For example, plastics are anthropogenic because they are only made by humans. The term anthropogenic is often used for human interventions in the environment and for human-made environmental problems , for example:

• anthropogenic landfill ( landfill ),
• anthropogenic landscape or anthropogenic biome ,
• anthropogenetic geomorphology (earth surface structure),
• anthropogenic greenhouse effect ,
• anthropogenic environmental pollution ,
  • anthropogenic radiation exposure from nuclear weapons tests and reactor accidents ,
• anthropogenic soil erosion .

The term natural is often used as a contrast to anthropogenic . Many influences on the environment can be both anthropogenic and natural, although a clear distinction is not always possible. For example, a forest fire can be caused by both humans and a natural cause (e.g. lightning strike ).

The increased influence of humans, especially since industrialization in the so-called industrialized countries , has caused anthropogenic changes up to and including damage to ecosystems and has also led to a decline in species diversity and thus biodiversity . It is discussed to call this period of human influence the Anthropocene .

However, anthropogenic changes do not necessarily have to lead to a reduction in biotope or species diversity. In this way, cultivated landscapes are created through extensive human use that accommodate a large number of valuable biotopes. For example, the continued existence of the species-rich poor grasslands , alpine meadows or heather is dependent on human use.

It is discussed whether the high biodiversity of the tree-poor biotopes dominated by humans supports the mega - herbivore hypothesis , according to which Central Europe was not only composed of forests in prehistoric times, but also had large, species-rich open countries . Similar to the African savannahs , these areas should have been created and preserved by large herbivores (megaherbivores) (now exterminated) .

See also

• Hemerobia
• Sea level rise since 1850

Web links

Wiktionary: anthropogenic  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Gerhard Lange, Klaus Knödel: Handbook for exploring the subsurface of landfills and contaminated sites . tape 8 : Exploration Practice . Springer, 2002, ISBN 3-540-43683-9 , pp. 45 ff . ( limited preview in Google Book search).
2. ↑ S.-P. Ballstaedt, P. Reinhard, M. Rentschler, E. Rottländer: Change of soils through anthropogenic influences: An interdisciplinary study book . Ed .: German Institute for Distance Learning Research at the University of Tübingen. Springer, 1997, ISBN 3-540-61556-3 .
3. ^ Gunnar Möller: CO ₂ emissions trading in the 2008–2012 trading period . Diplomica Verlag, Hamburg 2008, ISBN 978-3-8366-6112-6 , 2.1.1. anthropogenic greenhouse effect and its effects, p. 5 ( limited preview in Google Book search).