Ozone Layer Protection
Case Study of Environmental Conservation of Ozone in Hong Kong The ozone layer present in the stratosphere of the Earth is utmost important to us as it protects us from the exposure of ultraviolet rays which leads to several harmful effects. Without the ozone layer, human will be more prone to skin cancer and eye cataracts. Ultraviolet rays can also cause harm to marine life by reducing the amount of planktons and consequently depreciates the amount of fishes in the ocean. Besides that, the depletion of the ozone layer disrupts the production of crops and forest growth, another two things which are essential to human life and another reason why the ozone layer is substantial to us (Gleason, K., 2008). The Montreal Protocol was created in 1987 for awareness to protect the ozone layer internationally and it is still ongoing until today according to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), which stated that another nation has just joined this protocol in January 2012 (United Nations Environment Programme, 2012). Hong Kong being a signatory to the Montreal Protocol has to play their part in contributing to the decrease of the usage of hydro chlorofluorocarbons (HCFC). In 1985, there was a big hole found on the ozone. The main cause of ozone layer depletion is the release of chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) and hydro chlorofluorocarbons (HCF) into the atmosphere. These chemicals can be found in air conditioners, refrigerators, fire extinguishers, aerosol sprays and cleaning agents manufactured in the industry and therefore, Hong Kong being an industrialized country definitely contributes to the gradual disappearance of the ozone. It is harmful because it takes about twenty to hundred-twenty years to break down these compounds. When a chlorine atom is released into the atmosphere, it will react with oxygen molecules, destroying the ozone layer with its chemical processes. This process repeats every single second and as a result, a hole which is twice the size of