New evidence on ozone depletion

Forest and Bird, Volume 22, Issue 4, 1 November 1991, Page 6

New evidence on ozone depletion

RECENT DATA collected by NASA reveals that ozone depletion over the last decade has been occurring at twice the rate, over a wider area and for a longer period of time than previously predicted. While ozone loss is highest in the southern hemisphere, the extent of depletion in the northern hemisphere has also reached dangerous levels with measurements over Britain last winter recording an 8 percent thinning of the ozone layer which persisted into early spring. Under the terms of the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty designed to halt ozone destruction, production of CFCs is to continue for another 9 years and the manufacture of their substitutes, HCFCs until 2040. The HCFCs still contribute to ozone depletion and global warming. The industry, dominated by multinational companies DuPont and ICI, continues to pour millions of dollars into research and

development of their use, while proven non-depleting alternatives like ammonia and propane which do not offer the same profits as they cannot be patented — are ignored. Source: The Ecologist