Introduction
Ozone depletion has been regarded as one of the global environmental issues for several decades. It is defined by Martens (1) as the situation that the amount of stratosphere ozone layer is decreasing and being damaged. The major reason is that the ozone in the stratosphere protects us from the harmful ultraviolet radiation and absorbs heat from the infra-red radiation. Reducing the amount of ozone probably causes irreversible and permanent damages to human and environment, especially in Antarctica and South Hemisphere countries. This essay examines the consequences of ozone depletion to human health, climate and ecosystems before making discussion and conclusion.
Background
Scientists and scholars have started to measure the concentration …show more content…
Based on the evaluation above, climate change is one of the consequences of ozone depletion which alters the weather and influences the growth of plants and animals. Bronman et al. (8) believe that modifications of wind pattern could affect the water cycle in Antarctica. Since high wind speed leads to higher rate of phase changing of water, such as evaporation, freezing, condensation and sublimation, the availability of liquid water in the Antarctica may be decreased by rapid change of state of water. Consequently, the growth rate of animals and plants may be reduced by insufficient liquid water. Therefore, the biodiversity of Antarctica may decrease in the long run, for example, the marine ecosystems in the lagoon of eastern coastal area of Antarctica may be affect adversely due to the limited amount of liquid water (8). Similarly, Erickson et al. (9) suggest that increasing ocean surface average temperature, which stems from ozone depletion, might reduce the oxygen capacity of the ocean. As the oxygen solubility of the sea depends on the temperature of the sea, warmer temperature might lead to the escape of oxygen, ocean deoxygenation possibly be resulted. Subsequently, the growth rate some primary organisms, including phytoplankton organisms and algae, may be declined and the marine food chains may be disconnected (9). Unbalanced global marine ecosystems and marine harvest loss could be resulted in the long
Ozone depletion has been regarded as one of the global environmental issues for several decades. It is defined by Martens (1) as the situation that the amount of stratosphere ozone layer is decreasing and being damaged. The major reason is that the ozone in the stratosphere protects us from the harmful ultraviolet radiation and absorbs heat from the infra-red radiation. Reducing the amount of ozone probably causes irreversible and permanent damages to human and environment, especially in Antarctica and South Hemisphere countries. This essay examines the consequences of ozone depletion to human health, climate and ecosystems before making discussion and conclusion.
Background
Scientists and scholars have started to measure the concentration …show more content…
Based on the evaluation above, climate change is one of the consequences of ozone depletion which alters the weather and influences the growth of plants and animals. Bronman et al. (8) believe that modifications of wind pattern could affect the water cycle in Antarctica. Since high wind speed leads to higher rate of phase changing of water, such as evaporation, freezing, condensation and sublimation, the availability of liquid water in the Antarctica may be decreased by rapid change of state of water. Consequently, the growth rate of animals and plants may be reduced by insufficient liquid water. Therefore, the biodiversity of Antarctica may decrease in the long run, for example, the marine ecosystems in the lagoon of eastern coastal area of Antarctica may be affect adversely due to the limited amount of liquid water (8). Similarly, Erickson et al. (9) suggest that increasing ocean surface average temperature, which stems from ozone depletion, might reduce the oxygen capacity of the ocean. As the oxygen solubility of the sea depends on the temperature of the sea, warmer temperature might lead to the escape of oxygen, ocean deoxygenation possibly be resulted. Subsequently, the growth rate some primary organisms, including phytoplankton organisms and algae, may be declined and the marine food chains may be disconnected (9). Unbalanced global marine ecosystems and marine harvest loss could be resulted in the long