The Good and The Bad of Ozone

Do you know what is the ozone layer?
It is made up of 3 oxygen unlike the oxygen that we breathe ( 2 oxygen ). It is formed naturally at the stratosphere of our earth. It protects us from the dangerous UV rays from the sun which can cause skin cancer to humans, destroy crops and kill some marine life too.

This ozone layer sound really nice to humans. However it is actually destructive to us when it is formed at the troposphere where it is nearer to human beings and life on earth. But this ozone layer is not naturally formed, but form from air pollution created by automobile exhaust and emissions from factories and power plants.

This ozone which form unnaturally is called the bad ozone. But why is it bad?


It is extreamemly toxic and corrosive. People who inhale ozone during repeated exposure may permanently damage their lungs or suffer from respiratory infections. Ozone exposure may reduce lung function or aggravate existing respiratory conditions. It may also cause chest pain, coughing, throat irritation and congestion.

In addition to human health effects, ground-level ozone is also hard on plants and animals, damaging ecosystems and leading to reduced crop and forest yields. Ground-level ozone also kills many seedlings and damages foliage, making trees more susceptible to diseases, pests and harsh weather.

But anyway, it is our responsible to take care of our good ozone layer because it protects us from harm. If not, there will be a hole in our good ozone layer which threaten the life of humans being like the one in Antartica few years ago. But don't worry, the hole is 'covered' already thanks to the gourverment who worked hard to solve the problem.

But how do we do it?

We have to reduce using ozone depleting substance such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which is used as a coolent agent for air conditioner and refridgerator ( also found is aerosol cans) and HCFC ( which was thought to replace CFC but only to realise that it also a cause of ozone depletion ). This two substance are the main cause of ozone depletion. So when you plan to buy electrical appliances, try to choose appliences which are environmentally friendly.