REVIEW OF THE DOCUMENTARY –

THE ANTRACTIC OZONE HOLE.

FROM DISCOVERY TO RECOVERY A
SCIENTIFIC JOURNEY BY UNEP (&
FROM LITERATURE REVIEW) –
PRESENT DAY STATUS OF OZONE
AND EFFORTS FOR EDUCATION AND
AWARENESS REGARDING OZONE
DEPLETION & ITS CONCEQUENCES.

Critical Review of the Documentary

This Ozone Depletion is well clarified by the documentary – ‘The Antarctic Ozone Hole -
From Discovery to Recovery, a Scientific Journey’ by the UNEP Division of Technology,
Industry, and Economics (DTIC). This documentary gives information on the Antarctic
Ozone Hole depletion, the science behind the depletion, and the importance of the Montreal
Protocol, which was signed by all nations in order to prevent the Ozone Hole depletion.

1.Discovery and introduction

This Survey has been observing the Ozone levels in the stratosphere of the Antarctic region since
the 1950s, but they only had the statistics that they have collected and didn’t process them till the
1980s. Jonathan Shanklin was the first to identify that there was something wrong with the
numbers. He found out that the Ozone levels in the Antarctic during the spring seasons were
always on a decline, and with the help of his fellow colleagues, Joesph Farman and Brian
Gardiner, he has published a paper on this topic of the Antarctic Ozone Hole. The NASA
satellites have found a distinct Ozone hole over the Antarctic continent, and this damage could
be understood by comparing the satellite images over the period of times. Dr. Paul A. Newman
from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, USA, has explained this visible
depletion of the Ozone layer above the Antarctic.

The ozone hole problem is one of the least understood environmental issues by everyone. A
confusing part of the problem is its connection with global warming, that is climate change as a
result of increases in greenhouse gases. Although both problems are the result of atmospheric
pollution, the causes and consequences relating to each are very different. Despite the
differences, there are also some links between the two problems. For example, in addition to
causing ozone depletion, CFCs are also a greenhouse gas – so phasing out the production of
CFCs helps in combating climate change as well as repairing the ozone layer. An ozone molecule
consists of three oxygen atoms instead of the usual two the oxygen we breathe, O2, makes up 21% of the
atmosphere. It only exists in the atmosphere in trace quantities less than 0.001%, but its effects are very
important. Ozone molecules are created by the interaction of ultra-violet radiation from the Sun with O2
molecules, when an O2 molecule is split, the two free oxygen atoms will bond with other O2 molecules
to form O3 molecules. Because UV radiation is more intense at higher altitudes where the air is thinner, it
is in the stratosphere where most of the ozone is produced, giving rise to what is called the ‘ozone layer’.
The ozone layer, containing over 90% of all atmospheric ozone, extends between about 10 and 40km
altitude, peaking at about 25km. Above this level the concentration of oxygen available to be converted
into ozone declines so less ozone is formed despite the abundance of UV radiation.
The ozone layer is very important for life on Earth because it has the property of absorbing the most
damaging form of UV radiation, UV-B radiation which has a wavelength of between 280 and 315
nanometres. As UV radiation is absorbed by ozone in the stratosphere, it heats up the surrounding air to
produce the stratospheric temperature inversion that is shown in the following diagram. Most of the
stratospheric ozone is produced at tropical latitudes, but high altitude winds spread it over the
whole planet. It is continually forming and breaking down, and its distribution over the planet is
not uniform or constant. Instead, there are seasonal and longer term variations in the quantity of
stratospheric ozone in different parts of the world. However, over the long run the natural
processes of formation and breakdown are balanced. It is only in recent decades that human
activities have led to ozone being destroyed much faster than it can be formed, thereby creating
the ozone hole that exists today.

Ozone can also be formed at ground level to produce ‘photochemical smog’; and, as ozone is a
toxic gas, there is a health hazard when ozone reaches high levels. This problem occurs primarily
in the summer in cities with a high amount of traffic when sunlight interacts with car exhaust
fumes containing nitrogen oxides.WS

2.Reasons for Ozone hole

The ozone hole has developed because people have polluted the atmosphere with chemicals containing
chlorine and bromine. The primary chemicals involved are chlorofluorocarbons, halons, and carbon
tetrachloride. CFCs in particular have been used for a wide range of applications, including refrigeration,
air conditioning, foam packaging, and making aerosol spray cans. Because these chemicals are so inert,
they are able to stay in the atmosphere long enough to be carried upwards to the stratosphere where they
can damage the ozone layer.

The fact that most of the ozone depletion happens over Antarctica also requires some explanation. CFCs
and other ozone depleting gases may come from anywhere, but it is in the south polar stratosphere where
the conditions become most favourable for ozone destruction. The key factor is the presence of
stratospheric clouds and the lack of atmospheric mixing between the south polar latitudes and air from
elsewhere during the austral winter and early spring. Normally there are no clouds in the stratosphere
because there is so little water vapour present. However, during the south polar winter, air in the
stratosphere above Antarctica drops to temperatures below -80°C; enough to cause thin clouds to form.
As long as it remains dark, nothing happens; but when spring arrives, UV radiation from the Sun reaches
the Antarctic Circle and starts the process of chlorine release and ozone destruction. This continues until
the stratospheric clouds disappear due to warming of the south polar atmosphere as summer approaches.
By summertime, stratospheric air from lower latitudes is able to penetrate the polar latitudes, and thereby
replenish the ozone layer above Antarctica. Hence, there is a seasonal cycle to the ozone hole over
Antarctica with the lowest ozone levels recorded in late September and early October .While the same
processes do act to deplete ozone in the Arctic during the opposite time of the year, the problem
isn’t nearly so severe as it is in the south simply because the stratosphere over the Arctic tends
not to get as cold as the stratosphere over the Antarctic; and therefore, the formation of
stratospheric clouds is not as frequent or widespread in the Arctic. This is mainly due to the
differences in the distribution of land and sea between the two areas.

3. Effects and the Measures taken

The ozone layer protects life from harmful UV-B radiation which can cause cancer and stunt the
growth of plants. As UV radiation can penetrate into the surface of the ocean, marine organisms
especially phytoplankton can also be damaged. If there was no ozone layer at all, photosynthesis
by plants would be harmed and ecosystems cannot function normally.

The scale of ozone depletion over Antarctica became apparent in 1985than the international
community reached a consensus on what needed to be done. Ozone depleting chemicals would
have continued to accumulate in the atmosphere increasing the size of the Antarctic ozone hole
as well as thinning the ozone layer. The populated areas in the south, such as New Zealand and
Australia, and in the north would eventually have seen significant increases in exposure to UV
radiation if Ozone layer depletion was not taken into consideration.

In 1987 an historic international agreement was signed (the Montreal Protocol) which came into
force in 1989 and set deadlines for reducing and eliminating the production and use of ozone
depleting substances. It also promotes research and development into finding ozone safe
substitute chemicals for the uses to which CFCs, etc., have been put. It has since been approved
by 195 countries, has been revised several times, and has been described as one of the most
successful international treaties. Through its various mechanisms, the treaty has brought down
worldwide emissions of CFCs and other ozone depleting chemicals sharply. However, due to the
long residence time of many of these gases in the atmosphere, the ozone layer will not fully
recover until around 2050.The discovery of a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica in the mid-
1980s confirmed a tale of approaching environmental disaster resulting directly from economic
development. Thirty years later, with concerted global effort, the ozone layer is healing itself,
and the strategy driving its recovery exemplifies how international partnerships can work
together successfully towards a common goal. The ozone success story is a model for united
action that countries can learn from when implementing the post-2015 development agenda, to
be rolled out in New York later this year. It is clear that this agenda will integrate social,
environmental and economic factors in equal parts into measures of development.

Two million prevented cases of skin cancer per year by 2030 is one estimated social benefit of
the Protocol’s implementation; and in terms of environmental benefit, immeasurable damage to
crops, forests and wildlife from ultraviolet radiation has been averted. In response to the ozone
crisis, the Montreal Protocol was, uniquely for an environmental treaty, universally approved. It
brought together scientists, industry and government to work in an unprecedented partnership
towards a common goal.

Leaders took decisions to eliminate the consumption and production of ozone-depleting

substances because there was solid scientific evidence linking human activities to ozone
depletion—and linking that, in turn, to an increased incidence of skin cancer in people—as well
as up-to-date information on the technological developments on alternatives to ozone-depleting
substances. Action was based on people’s needs and concerns as well as on plausible future
scenarios indicating the implications of inaction. As the host to the Montreal Protocol, and one of
its four implementing partners, UNEP has been key in its execution. The Montreal Protocol
resulted from a careful assessment of the social and environmental costs of continuing a course
of action against its economic benefits, undertaken globally. This is the exact premise behind the
post-2015 development agenda. The ozone success story can be used as a model for common
international action and global partnership, among all stakeholders, in taking on and committing
to the work required to fulfil the sustainable development goals and develop a global green
economy.

4.Recovery and Present day situation

The researchers tracked the yearly opening of the Antarctic ozone hole in the month of
September, from 2000 to 2015. They analysed ozone measurements taken from weather balloons
and satellites, as well as satellite measurements of sulfur dioxide emitted by volcanoes, which
can also enhance ozone depletion. And, they tracked meteorological changes, such as
temperature and wind, which can shift the ozone hole back and forth.

They then compared their yearly September ozone measurements with model simulations that
predict ozone levels based on the amount of chlorine that scientists have estimated to be present
in the atmosphere from year to year. The researchers found that the ozone hole has declined
compared to its peak size in 2000, shrinking by more than 4 million square kilometres by 2015.
They further found that this decline matched the model’s predictions, and that more than half the
shrinkage was due solely to the reduction in atmospheric chlorine. 2015, the ozone hole reached
a record size, despite the fact that atmospheric chlorine continued to drop.

“It’s been interesting to think about this in a different month, and looking in September was a
novel way,” Ivy says. “It showed we can actually see a chemical fingerprint, which is sensitive to
the levels of chlorine, finally emerging as a sign of recovery.”

5.Conclusion

The Earth’s ozone layer would have collapsed by 2050 with catastrophic consequences without
the Montreal Protocol, studies have shown. In the world we avoided thanks to the Protocol the
UV Index measure during a Washington, DC or Los Angles mid-summer day would be at least
30 by 2070. Anything over 11 is considered extreme. There would have been an additional 280
million cases of skin cancer, 1.5 million skin cancer deaths, and 45 million cataracts in the
world.
Further, climate change would have been far worse by mid-century because the chemicals that
“eat” ozone are also super-greenhouse gases, thousands of times more potent than CO2. And that
would have meant the potential intensity of hurricanes and cyclones would have increased three
times, another study found.Our global climate would be at least 25 per cent hotter today without
the Protocol. That additional heat energy would have led to extreme weather events like by 2070
the world would have been 2.5 degrees Celsius hotter, a level most experts agree is disastrously
high. Without the Ozone Treaty You’d Get Sunburned in 5 Minutes. Turning 30, the Montreal
Protocol was a landmark environmental success that serves as a model for addressing other
problems, although it also has some unfinished business.

Some countries in the developing world haven’t yet phased out ozone-damaging chemicals, a
hydro chlorofluorocarbon found in many refrigeration and air conditioning systems. They’ll
require financial support to do so, which the Protocol provides under its Multilateral Fund. The
Multilateral Fund will need to be replenished for the next three years at the upcoming Montreal
Protocol conference in November.

The use of HFCs for air conditioning and refrigeration is growing at a fast pace in developing
countries, particularly China and India. That’s in part because climate change is producing more
and longer deadly heat waves and driving up summer temperatures. This HFC phase down is
known as the Kigali Amendment to the Protocol and would have a big impact on climate change,
cutting global warming up to 0.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, according to the
UNEP.