How We Shrunk The Ozone Hole 🕳️

Morning CFCs!

Remember the whole ozone hole thing? Probably not. You’re all too young. 

So, here's a super quick rundown of what happened.

It was the 1980s.

Some smart people had just discovered that there was this MASSIVE hole in the ozone layer of our atmosphere.

Right over Antarctica.

(The orange bit is the hole)

Now, the ozone layer is super important because it protects us from UV Radiation.

And UV radiation… causes skin cancer.

The worst part?

The hole was getting bigger…

And bigger…

And BIGGER…

Not very good.

So… what the heck was going on?

Well, it turns out this whole problem stemmed from little chemicals in deodorant bottles called CFCs…

Corporations had discovered these chemicals in the late 1920s.

They were stable, non-flammable, and non-toxic, meaning they wouldn’t burst into flames for no reason.

But they were also pretty dang cheap!

So they began being used EVERYWHERE:

Usage quickly skyrocketed, pumping millions and millions of tons of the stuff into the atmosphere.

Ok, ok, so what was the actual problem with these things?

Well, in the lower atmosphere, CFCs are fine. 

They don’t break down and they don’t react with any other molecules, they’re just chilling.

It's when they keep rising into the stratosphere that the problem…arises.

Because once it gets up there, UV light starts to break the CFC molecules apart which releases a bunch of chlorine atoms.

The trouble with chlorine is that they REACT badly with Ozone molecules and break them apart…

This meant that CFCs could destroy all the Ozone molecules in the Ozone layer that protect us from skin cancer…

Scientists were like “this is a problem”

But companies producing CFCs were like “you’re wrong… and probably communists”

But luckily in the 1980s US president and UK Prime Minister got together and decided to sort this mess out.

Eventually the US, UK, Canada, Norway, Sweden and Finland led calls for an worldwide BAN on CFCs.

And in 1987, it actually happened!

197 of 197 countries in the world signed something called the Montreal Protocol, requiring the rapid phasing out of CFCs. 

Literally everybody agreed, which never freakin happens.

And you know what… it worked.

We phased out CFCs and replaced them with a safe alternative.

And since then, the ozone hole has started shrinking…

World saved!

Stay Cute,
Reece, Henry & Dylan 🌈

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