Three newly discovered gases produced by man joined the long list of chemicals that can destroy the ozone layer, but these new components pose a weak threat since they have been found in low concentrations, reveals a study .
Components previously unknown ¿two chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) and a new ¿chlorodifluoromethane were discovered by a team of researchers from the University of East Anglia, UK.
Scientists discovered atmospheric gases through analyzes of air collected in a relatively unpolluted research station at Cape Grim, Tasmania, between 1978 and 2012, and instruments aboard commercial flights.
The three new components exist in low amounts in the atmosphere and none of them seems to have dramatically increased their concentration in recent years, according to co-author, Johannes Laube, cited on Yahoo news.
‘The three components are not a threat significantly to the ozone layer, nor were the last four decades. That’s very comforting to know, “said Laube international journal Live Science in email response.
Due to its destructive effect of the ozone layer, the components of CFCs were limited in 1987 by the Montreal Protocol and banned entirely in 2010.The ozone layer blocks ultraviolet rays that cause cancer. Scientists have discovered a huge hole in the Antarctic in 1980, which is currently in ‘processing’.
In March, Laube and his companions also identified new gases that pose a more serious threat to the hole ozone in Antarctica. Before March 2014, were accounted for seven CFC HCFC-six (which were introduced as substitutes for CFC) in the list of destructive gases layer. Now, the count expanded to 12 CFC HCFC-eight and may even increase, since researchers continue to analyze samples of additional air.‘There is much more manmade gases into the atmosphere than we thought and we can find out if they are to be issued or not’ Laube said, adding that this work “is significant and an independent monitoring mechanism of the Montreal Protocol.”
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