Celebrating ozone success story

The Montreal Protocol should serve as a benchmark for global collaboration for a shared future.

Today, September 16, marks the United Nations International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer . The ozone layer, an atmospheric shield that sits in the stratosphere about 9 to 18 miles (15 to 30 kilometres) above the earth's surface, absorbs the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays. The depletion of the ozone layer has been a major concern for scientists and environmentalists, among others, after it was discovered in the 1970s that the ozone layer was being depleted. The first major steps to recognising the harmful effects of ozone layer depletion were taken 35 years ago, after the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer which was adopted and signed by 28 countries in March 1985. This was followed by the drafting of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in September 1987.