Good news for the ozone layer

The ozone layer is what is protecting our earth from harmful solar radiations and is, according to ONU mandated expert, on track to recover from the pollution it suffered ever since the industrial revolution.

This is thanks to the progressive elimination of nearly 99% of banned substances directly harming the ozone layer. Not only has those sanctions managed to preserve the layer, it also contributed in its recovery in the upper atmosphere as well as a decrease in human exposure to UV lights, according to the ONU experts.

The hole in our ozone layer originates from human made activities, mainly the use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) previously used in fridges worldwide. Fortunately, the use of this carbon molecules has been severely slowed down with the 1987 “Protocole de Montréal” signed by 195 countries across the globe. This gave the chance to the ozone layer to be able to heal.

According to ONU Environment, if the current politics decide to stay in place with their policies, the ozone layer should get back to similar values as the ones recorded in 1980 (which is before the appearance of the hole in the ozone layer) in the year 2066 above Antarctica and in 2040 over the rest of the world.

However, some geo-engineering projects aimed at reducing climate change may affect this progress. As counterintuitive as it sounds, the idea of intentionally introducing aerosols in the stratosphere in order to reflect a certain amount of sunbeams into space might cause a problem in the recovery of the ozone layer.

One of these projects consists of injection of billions of sulphur particles in the upper layer of the atmosphere. The co-president of the scientific panel working on the ozone layer on the count of the ONU warns us that this project “could have as a consequence a significant decrease in the levels of ozone, there are too many uncertainties”.