Outside the Safe Operating Space of the Planetary Boundary for Novel Entities
Linn Persson,Bethanie Carney Almroth,Christopher D Collins,Sarah Cornell,Cynthia A. de Wit,Miriam Diamond,Peter Fantke,Martin Hassellöv,Matthew MacLeod,Morten Ryberg,Peter Søgaard Jørgensen,Patricia Villarrubia Gómez,Zhanyun Wang,M. Hauschild +13 more
TLDR
It is submitted that the safe operating space of the planetary boundary of novel entities is exceeded since annual production and releases are increasing at a pace that outstrips the global capacity for assessment and monitoring.Abstract:
We submit that the safe operating space of the planetary boundary of novel entities is exceeded since annual production and releases are increasing at a pace that outstrips the global capacity for assessment and monitoring. The novel entities boundary in the planetary boundaries framework refers to entities that are novel in a geological sense and that could have large-scale impacts that threaten the integrity of Earth system processes. We review the scientific literature relevant to quantifying the boundary for novel entities and highlight plastic pollution as a particular aspect of high concern. An impact pathway from production of novel entities to impacts on Earth system processes is presented. We define and apply three criteria for assessment of the suitability of control variables for the boundary: feasibility, relevance, and comprehensiveness. We propose several complementary control variables to capture the complexity of this boundary, while acknowledging major data limitations. We conclude that humanity is currently operating outside the planetary boundary based on the weight-of-evidence for several of these control variables. The increasing rate of production and releases of larger volumes and higher numbers of novel entities with diverse risk potentials exceed societies’ ability to conduct safety related assessments and monitoring. We recommend taking urgent action to reduce the harm associated with exceeding the boundary by reducing the production and releases of novel entities, noting that even so, the persistence of many novel entities and/or their associated effects will continue to pose a threat.read more
Citations
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Outside the Safe Operating Space of a New Planetary Boundary for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
TL;DR: In this article , it is hypothesized that environmental contamination by per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) defines a separate planetary boundary and that this boundary has been exceeded.
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Soil microbiomes and one health
TL;DR: Banerjee et al. as mentioned in this paper identified microorganisms that are shared between different one health compartments and showed that soil, plant and human microbiomes are perhaps more interconnected than previously thought.
Journal ArticleDOI
A planetary boundary for green water
Lan Wang-Erlandsson,Arne Tobian,Ruud J. van der Ent,Ingo Fetzer,Sofie A. te Wierik,Miina Porkka,Arie Staal,Fernando Jaramillo,Heindriken Dahlmann,Chandrakant Singh,Peter Greve,Dieter Gerten,Patrick W. Keys,Tom Gleeson,Sarah Cornell,Will Steffen,Xuemei Bai,Johan Rockström +17 more
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors propose a green water planetary boundary based on root-zone soil moisture and demonstrate that widespread green water modifications now present increasing risks to Earth system resilience. But the green water boundary is not explicitly considered in the existing planetary boundaries framework that demarcates a global safe operating space for humanity.
Journal ArticleDOI
A global plastic treaty must cap production
Melanie Bergmann,Bethanie Carney Almroth,Susanne M. Brander,Tridibesh Dey,Dannielle S. Green,S O Gundogdu,Anja Krieger,Martin Wagner,Tony R. Walker +8 more
TL;DR: The United Nations Environment Assembly adopted a resolution to combat plastic pollution with a global and legally binding plastics treaty by 2024, but it is unclear whether the treaty will include a cap on production or cover plastic chemicals as discussed by the authors .
Journal ArticleDOI
National responsibility for ecological breakdown: a fair-shares assessment of resource use, 1970-2017.
TL;DR: In this article , the authors proposed a method for quantifying national responsibility for ecological breakdown by assessing nations' cumulative material use in excess of equitable and sustainable boundaries, and derived national fair shares of a sustainable resource corridor.
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