NYT/AP: Report: Ozone Hole May Disappear by 2050

[DeepModem Mom]

Report: Ozone Hole May Disappear by 2050
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: May 20, 2006

TOKYO (AP) -- The ozone hole over the Antarctic is likely to begin contracting in the future and may disappear by 2050 because of a reduction in the release of chlorofluorocarbons and other ozone-depleting gases, according to a team of Japanese scientists.

The findings are based on a series of numerical simulations carried out by Eiji Akiyoshi of the National Institute for Environmental Studies, near Tokyo, using projected emissions of chlorofluorocarbons and other gases blamed for the ozone hole.

According to a report posted Friday on the institute's Web site, the hole is at its largest now but is likely to gradually start contracting around 2020 and disappear by around 2050.

The team's findings are in line with research by other scientists.

Some, however, have suggested the hole won't heal until much later because old refrigerators and air-conditioning systems -- many in the United States and Canada -- are still releasing ozone-killing chemicals. Both countries curbed those chemicals in newer products....

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Japan-Ozone-Hole.html

[rodeodance]

1. It is great to know that ACTION--by man CAN reverse the terrible

thinks we have done to the enviroment. It CAN be done!

[tanyev]

2. Well, that's the good news.

The bad news is that humanity will have already been wiped out by other means.

[aquaman]

3. That truly is good news...

Too bad that it will be about 120 degrees every day from global warming by then. But hey, as long as we can get some sun without worrying.

[SidDithers]

4. Good news...

it's too bad, though, that climate change from greenhouse gas emissions isn't as easy to reverse.

Thanks for posting.

Sid

[cally]

5. I got tears in my eyes reading this

In 1976, I lobbied for a bill to reduce ozone emissions in California. It's great to know we can solve these potential environmental catastrophes with determined, collective action. Now let's focus on global warming.

[Demeter]

6. Probably Because Humanity Will Be Extinct By 2040

and by its own hand.

[NEOBuckeye]

7. I think 2047 will be the watershed year for humanity's fate.

Don't ask me why that year in particular. But whatever happens that year or in proximity of it, will be a direct result of our past activities from the 1960s up to that point.

We learned back in the 1960s about energy limitations (i.e. Peak Oil) and the need for clean, renewable alternatives, environmental damage (i.e. the Ozone Layer, pollution, etc.) and the need for humanity to get along amongst ourselves. Four decades later, we've made some progress, but have been reluctant to take the really big steps that matter. In fact, some of us (i.e. conservatives, big business and religious groups) have done all we can to cling to the ways of the past and prevent the new ways from taking hold.

I feel sorry for these people in a way, because they are about to see their ideas brutally shattered, and they themselves dragged kicking and screaming into the future come the 2010s, as the full brunt of Peak Oil becomes undeniably apparent.

We've had some lead time now to make some of the necessary changes. Now, that time has nearly run out, and those changes will be forced upon us. How we deal with the crisis of the early to mid 2010s will determine our ultimate fate in the 2040s.

And no, folks, I'm not kidding.

[eppur_se_muova]

9. Not one of those 'binary millenium' people ?!? 2047=11111111111

Or did you pick 2047 because it's the smallest composite Mersenne number based on a prime exponent?:evilgrin:

[cally]

8. kick

[Canuckistanian]

10. Good! This, and acid rain reduction might do the trick

Rememeber acid rain? That disaster was mitigated by legislation on both sides of the border by Canadians and Americans.

Pollutions contols, emission standards (which are currently being reversed) and energy efficiency helped reduce (but not eliminate) acid rain.

And why is this good? Because it shows that human actions are responsible and human actions can correct serious environmental problems.

But Global Warming is going to need some mighty big remedies and is facing some awfully big obstacles.

Getting this asshole out of power is a start.