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Al Gore said “[T]he ozone hole [is] caused by CFC’s…” (pg. 292). By this he infers that we made the hole in the ozone layers. With almost all chlorofluorocarbons being put into the air in the northern hemisphere, why is the southern hemisphere being affected in such a drastic way? The winds currents of the world don’t allow for much mixing between the two hemispheres. Then he says CFC molecules “float steadily upward” (pg. 318). Most scientists will acknowledges that CFC’s are heavier than air and float steadily downward. Some estimates of how long it would take humanity’s CFC’s to get blown up into the atmosphere are 100 years. Humanity hasn’t been producing CFC’s for 100 years. And then there’s the problem of how to get our CFC’s into the southern hemisphere. It’s interesting to note that in Al Gore’s Earth in the Balance he never mentions that the ozone layers are being rebuilt 24 hours a day. When the sun’s rays hit oxygen, which is 24 hours a day, it changes the oxygen to ozone. The reason there’s not as much ozone at the poles is because when the rays do hit the earth (during the 6 months of winter at the poles there’s no sun at all) the sun’s rays don’t hit the earth head-on. Instead, since the rays hit at such an oblique angle, there’s not many rays to make ozone. That’s why the ozone layers are always thinner at the poles. Antarctica has an active volcano ( Mt. Erebus, 13,202’) which produces a tremendous amount of ozone killing chemicals. In a major eruption it can throw more ozone killing chemicals into the sky than mankind has ever produced. Ozone has been called a “poison” that is “harmful” at ground level. Ozone is actually a handy thing to have if you want to get rid of odors, or sterilize something. Ozone machines are used in the smoking sections of many restaurants. The next time your dog gets sprayed by a skunk, put him in a room with an ozone machine and in a couple of hours he’ll come out smelling as fresh as today’s laundry! Ozone machines have also been used to kill mold and mildew in difficult-to-reach places like inside of furniture and walls. One last thing – the latest data about the ozone hole says it’s getting smaller. |