On the basis of the history of chlorofluorocarbons described in Box 2.1.

Box 2.1:

 

Discuss how this technology resulted in unexpected impacts and shifting of problems from one domain to another.

Transcribed Image Text:

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 1981 1983 1985 1987 1999 2001 Year September 2009 2003 2005 bub 2902 2009 September 2018 2011 2013 2015 2017