‍Commentary by Atrox

Original Article: https://www.stockholmresilience.org/news--events/general-news/2025-09-24-seven-of-nine-planetary-boundaries-now-breached.html

Another milestone in the industrial technological system's all-out assault of the natural world. In addition to six other markers,[1] the oceans have now become too acidic to maintain the stability needed to keep the Earth’s natural systems in balance, according to the system of markers developed by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).[2]

“The drop in aerosol pollution and the healing of the ozone layer, shows that it is possible to turn the direction of global development.”

The PIK’s optimism is, in a way, commendable, however, it is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how societies develop. It is impossible, in fact, for a society in the long-term to be develop according to human will, or to develop in accord with natural systems, despite the best intentions of policy makers. The technological system adjusts society to fit its ever-changing needs, never the other way around. The main reasons that phasing out ozone-depleting aerosols was possible—and enough nations were willing to participate in the initiative to effect change—were that industrial society already had plenty of suitable (economic; efficient) alternatives at its disposal and the fact that ozone depletion due to aerosol use was a relatively simple problem to solve, with clear cause and effect. Therefore, the economic disadvantages of the phase-out were minuscule in comparison to the near-term threat to industrial society posed by unfiltered solar radiation. In contrast, there are, at present, no economical alternatives to fossil fuels, hence the lack of international agreement on a solution to CO2 emissions. Thus, the phasing out of ozone-depleting aerosols is not an example of human will defying technical necessity for the sake of the environment, but an example to the contrary.

Though the PIK points to this as a past success and reason to believe that one day we can reverse the rest of the breached boundaries, it ignores the possibility that ozone depletion could resume in a more extreme way than ever before, albeit via different mechanisms. Just one of these different mechanisms has already been identified as potentially catastrophic: artificial satellites. The projected increase in low Earth orbit satellites is expected to do tremendous damage to the ozone layer as satellites, such as those from the Starlink network, burn up at the end of their useful life.

PIK recognizes that all of earth’s systems are interconnected, and that a change in one system affects all others, but they seem to overlook this quality in the global technological system: because of its interconnectedness and incomprehensible complexity, to change one part of the system is to cause unpredictable cascading effects in many if not all other areas.

In addition, because of their interconnectedness, to have any hope of permanently reversing any one of these breached boundaries, all of them must be reversed in tandem. In order to accomplish this with policy and reform, as PIK intends, there needs to be a global effort. Every nation would have to place crippling restrictions on their industries. This is assuming that even countries like North Korea would participate, otherwise the non-compliant nations would economically and militarily outcompete the compliant ones as is the case with all self-propagating systems. They would, in effect, be handing the world over to dictators who only care about the power of their regime, not the continued existence of wilderness, freedom or dignity on Earth.

The complete destruction of the industrial technological system in every corner of the world is the only rational solution. The data that the PIK is publishing should, on its own, be enough to dispel any delusions held by frightened reformists and make clear that a revolution against modern technology is the sole course of action that can salvage what’s left of the wild.

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