Whatever came of the Ozone Scare?

Discussion in 'Earth Science' started by Bowser, May 31, 2016.

  1. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    I remember back in the 80's there was a big scare concerning ozone depletion, something to do with hydrocarbons destroying the ozone. I actually tried to find a refrigerator that was "ozone friendly." I hear nothing about it these days. What came of it?
     
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  3. billvon Valued Senior Member

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    CFC's were damaging the ozone layer. The Montreal Protocol forced a change from CFC's to HCFC's/HFC's which do not harm the ozone layer. CFC concentrations started to decrease starting in 1996, and the ozone hole stopped growing in 2006. It is now getting smaller as the ozone in the atmosphere regenerates.
     
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  5. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    Indeed, it was an excellent of international cooperation, to deal with a threat to the globe from man-made pollution.

    Solving it was made somewhat easier, I believe, by the fact that the problem refrigerants were mostly made by a handful of multinationals, who could be made to see the need for change.

    But the substitute HFCs turn out to be potent greenhouse gases, so they too are being phased out now: http://www.climatechangenews.com/2015/11/06/hfc-phase-out-in-sight-as-2016-deadline-set/

    So it goes on, but we are in an unquestionably far better position now than we were.
     
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  7. Yazata Valued Senior Member

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    The Earth became uninhabitable. The human race is extinct.
     
  8. iceaura Valued Senior Member

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    You don't hear much about the polio scare of the 80s either - when hundreds of thousands of children were becoming infected all over the world.

    Rivers don't catch fire in the big cities of the Midwest any more. The national bird, the Bald Eagle, is no longer declining toward extinction. And the side effects of acquiring high blood levels of lead by breathing air no longer afflict the children of the middle class and white peoples in the US.

    If you are actually curious about the government actions that brought us these benefits, Google is your friend.
     

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