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Caution against ozone-depletion complacency
Many people think the problem of ozone depletion has been solved by more restrictive international agreements but "such complacency may prove fatal," an expert says. The 15-member European Union agreed in October to set strict limits on ground-level ozone pollution, but Dr. Frank de Gruijl, a professor of dermatology from the Netherlands, says such agreements must be scrutinized and policed with the "utmost vigilance." That doesn't appear to be happening. One of the major existing problems, says de Gruijl, is illegal trade involving large quantities of ozone-depleting substances. And while developed countries are curbing use of these substances, developing countries have no such safeguards. Sources of ozone depletion include the loss of chlorofluorocarbons from air conditioners, fire extinguishers, foaming and cleaning products, and fumigants used to kill nematodes. In a recent article (CMAJ 2000;163:851-5) de Gruijl advised consumers in developed countries to "remain vigilant and not purchase anything operating or produced with ozone-depleting substances when good alternatives are available." The spectre of ozone-depletion came to the fore this fall when 120 000 Chileans were warned to stay indoors during prime sunlight hours. De Gruijl says these warnings are "understandable" in the face of a sixfold increase in the chance of sunburn and the possibility of a temporary depression of cellular immune responses, which could make people more vulnerable to infections. The ozone hole over the Antarctic is the largest since scientists began measuring it 15 years ago: the UN reported more than 50% depletion throughout most of the hole. NASA (http://jwocky.gsfc.nasa.gov/) reports that the hole has spread over 28.5 million square km, an area 3 times larger than the continental US. Barbara Sibbald, CMAJ
Copyright 2000 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors |