The Unraveling Anthropocene: Exploring Murky Geographies

Abstract

Many markers have been proposed for the onset of the Anthropocene. One possibility, anthroturbation, involves humankind’s excavation of tunnels, mines, and boreholes—the trace fossils of our civilization. This article explores the potential for anthropogenic sandstone caves to help refine the concept of the Subterranean Anthropocene in terms of anthroturbation. In friable sandstones such as the St. Peter Sandstone of the American Midwest, anthroturbation triggers runaway natural processes analogous to that of anthropogenic greenhouse gases which trigger uncontrollable warming in the atmosphere. Using Levi-Strauss’ A World on the Wane to contextualize the geology, and drawing from autoethnography, murky psychogeography, and the embodied experience of historical travel narratives, I propose a critical interdisciplinary framework for thinking about the Subterranean Anthropocene in terms of anthroturbation, emphasizing the role of dynamic processes and unraveling, rather than static markers.