A history of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) compounds and the ozone hole is provided in Chapters 2 and 5.

history of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC):

What role did the cultural narrative and political aspects play in the opposition to addressing this problem? What was the tipping point that resulted in the Montreal Protocol?

Transcribed Image Text:

BOX 2.1 History of Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) When first developed in the 1930s by Thomas Midgeley at General Motors, CFCs were touted as miracle compounds that were non-toxic and stable, with many desirable properties. The ozone hole was predicted by Molina and Rowland [8] and then observed and monitored by satellites [9], resulting in images like those in Figure 2.6. The dark region shows the ozone hole over the Antarctic, which typically appears during the Antarctic winter. The ozone layer in the stratosphere protects the Earth by blocking the ultraviolet part of sunlight. This regulating ecosystem service has deteriorated because of the use of ozone-depleting agents such as CFCs and other substances that release a chlorine or bromine atom into the Antarctic stratosphere. These compounds had, and some still have, a variety of uses, including as refrigerants, cleaning agents, fungicides, and flame retardants. September 1979 Average ozone hole area from 07 Sep to 13 Oct (million sq. km) 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 1979 September 1989 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 September 1999 1991 1993 missing 1995 September 2009 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 September 2018 2011 2013 2015 2017