Ozone Hole Is also Polluting Our Environment

Ozone layer

The ozone layer is the part of the Earth's atmosphere which contains relatively high concentrations of ozone (O3).

Although the concentration of ozone in the ozone layer is very small, it is vitally important to life because it absorbs biologically harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the Sun.

" Changes In Earth's Ozone Layer Predicted To Increase UV Radiation In World "

Physicists have discovered that changes in the Earth’s ozone layer due to climate change will reduce the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation in northern high latitude regions. Other regions of the Earth, such as the tropics and Antarctica, will instead face increasing levels of UV radiation.


According to my views - “Climate change is an established fact, but scientists are only just beginning to understand its regional manifestations.”


21st-century climate change will alter atmospheric circulation, increasing the flux of ozone from the upper to the lower atmosphere and shifting the distribution of ozone within the upper atmosphere. The result will be a change in the amount of UV radiation reaching the Earth’s surface which varies dramatically between regions: e.g. up to a 20 per cent increase in UV radiation over southern high latitudes during spring and summer, and a 9 per cent decrease in UV radiation over northern high latitudes, by the end of the century.

Ozone Depletion Reduces Ocean Carbon Uptake

The Southern Ocean plays an important role in mitigating climate change because it acts as a sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Most current models predict that the strength of the Southern Ocean carbon dioxide sink should increase as atmospheric carbon dioxide rises, but observations show that this has not been the case.

Consider the effects of stratospheric ozone depletion, which most previous studies had not included. They compare coupled carbon-climate models with and without ozone depletion and find that including ozone depletion produced a significant reduction in Southern Ocean carbon uptake, in good agreement with observed trends.

Ozone depletion, combined with increased atmospheric greenhouse gas concentration, drives stronger winds above the Southern Ocean. These stronger winds bring more carbon-rich deep water to the surface, which reduces the ocean's ability to absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

While the effects of increased UV have been widely studied because of the problem of ozone depletion, decreased UV could have adverse effects too, e.g. on vitamin D production for people in regions with limited sunlight such as the northern high latitudes.

“Both human and ecosystem health are affected by air quality and by UV radiation." While there has been much research on the impact of climate change on air quality, our work shows that this research needs to include the effect of changes in stratospheric ozone. And while there has been much research on the impact of ozone depletion on UV radiation and its impacts on human and ecosystem health, the notion that climate change could also affect UV radiation has not previously been considered.