The elimination of ozone-depleting chemicals has put the Earth’s protective layer on the path to recovery, according to an assessment published by the United Nations. An international pact in 1987 to stop using chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) has been effective and should restore the ozone layer to 1980 values within the next two decades, BBC news reports.
The ozone layer, which absorbs most of the ultraviolet radiation from the sun, began depleting in 1970. Exposure to the ultraviolet rays can cause health problems, including skin cancer. Prior to the Montreal Protocol signed in 1987, CFCs were commonly found in a wide range of household products, including spray cans, refrigerators and air conditioners.
If current policies continue, different regions will begin seeing a recovery over the next few decades, including the Antarctic in 2066 and 2045 over the Arctic.
Phasing out CFCs have also had a positive effect on mitigating climate change because the chemicals are powerful greenhouse gases. That phase-out will have prevented up to 1 degree Celsius of warming by the middle of the century, BBC News reports.
Read the full BBC News report here.
