Anthropoquinas
Anthropoquinas are a recently described class of sedimentary rocks that incorporate human-made materials (technofossils) into their structure.
Definition and Origin
- The term anthropoquinas was introduced in a 2020 study to denote “recently formed coastal sedimentary rocks containing anthropogenic items cemented with biogenic and siliciclastic material.”
- These human artifacts (technofossils) may include metal fragments (e.g. nails, bottle caps) and plastic items (e.g. fragments, earrings) that become bound within natural sediments and then lithify (harden) via natural cementation processes.
- Unlike some other novel “plastic-rock” formations, anthropoquinas are not purely melts or fusions of plastic and rock; rather, they are sedimentary rocks into which anthropogenic particles are incorporated.
Key Characteristics
- Inclusion of technofossils: Items of human origin (metal, plastic) serve as components within the rock matrix.
- Mixed composition: Natural constituents such as shell fragments, lithic grains, biogenic materials (e.g. fragments of marine organisms) are present along with the anthropogenic ones.
- Recent age / modern formation: The rocks are not ancient; they form in the present geological epoch, providing a marker of human influence in the rock record.
- Cementation process: After deposition and burial, natural cementing agents bind the mixture of natural and anthropogenic fragments to form a hardened rock.
Significance and Implications
- Indicator of the Anthropocene: Anthropoquinas offer geological evidence of human impact on Earth’s systems. Their presence may serve as a marker horizon in the geologic record of the Anthropocene.
- Geodiversity & conservation: They underscore how human debris becomes integrated into natural geological features, raising questions about geodiversity and preserving “natural” rock units.
- Plastic pollution and rock formation: They relate to growing recognition that plastic and other anthropogenic materials are becoming part of sedimentary systems — joining classes such as plastiglomerate, pyroplastic, and plasticrust.
- Environmental persistence: Because the anthropogenic materials are locked within rock, they may persist for very long durations, altering how we consider the long-term fate of human debris.
Examples & Reports
- In a study from coastal southern Brazil, six samples of anthropoquinas were documented containing technofossils such as metal bottle caps, ship nails, plastic fragments and a plastic earring.
- Researchers have drawn parallels between anthropoquinas and other emergent “plasticified rock” types, with increasing interest in marine and terrestrial settings.
- A recent discovery in China of plastic chemically bonded to rocks cited “anthropoquinas” among the terms used to describe such hybrid formations.
Relationship to Other Plastic-Rock Phenomena
- Plastiglomerate: Formed by molten or melted plastic binding natural substrates, often via burning or heat, creating a composite of plastic and natural materials.
- Pyroplastic: A subset of plastiglomerate, derived from heat or burning of plastics and adherence to natural rock surfaces.
- Plasticrust: Plastic debris coating or encrusting rock surfaces, often in intertidal zones, distinct from deeper lithified rocks.
- Anthropoquinas differ by being true sedimentary rocks that include anthropogenic materials in their rock fabric rather than being mere coatings or melt composites.
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