NOAA Study Reports Improvements in the Ozone Hole Since Last Year

In a news release from The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), there are findings from an evaluation of the ozone layer which indicate that while the notorious "hole" in the ozone layer is still present, it is once again at "near-average levels." This news comes after last year's report of record losses within the "critical area," as well as for the size of the area of ozone that had been affected.

"This year's ozone hole is no giant - and that's good news," remarked Earth System Research Laboratory scientist Bryan Johnson in the press release. Johnson, who is the project leader for NOAA's balloon-borne ozone monitoring at the South Pole, further said that "in spite of variations caused by temperature, atmospheric dynamics, and other natural factors, we expect the ozone hole to gradually appear smaller and smaller over time and eventually not form at all."

This news comes 20 years after the landmark Montreal Protocol was signed. The Montreal Protocol dictated international emission limits for ozone-depleting compounds, such as Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), a gas emitted from, among other things, certain refrigerants and aerosol spray cans. Chlorine and bromine, which were among the ozone-depleting compounds sent up to the stratosphere in gases over the years, had peaked in concentration in the lower atmosphere in 1995 and climaxed in concentration in 2001 within the stratosphere. Though actions taken in light of the Montreal Protocol over the last 20 years have reversed the depletion of the ozone hole, ozone-depleting gases can remain in the atmosphere for between 40 and 100 years, so a complete recovery for the ozone may not occur until at least 2070, according to the NOAA press release.