Human impact on the environment or
anthropogenic impact on the environment includes impacts on
biophysical environments,
biodiversity, and other resources. The term
anthropogenic designates an effect or object resulting from
human activity. The term was first used in the technical sense by Russian geologist Alexey Pavlov, and was first used in English by British ecologist
Arthur Tansley in reference to human influences on
climax plant communities. The atmospheric scientist
Paul Crutzen introduced the term "
anthropocene" in the mid-1970s. The term is sometimes used in the context of
pollution emissions that are produced as a result of human activities but applies broadly to all major human impacts on the environment.