Scientists of the Institute of Geography named after Academician H.A.Aliyev gave an interview to the media on the occasion of the International Day for the Protection of the Ozone Layer.
Speaking about the importance of the ozone layer for the Earth in an interview with the newspaper “Azerbaijan”, the head of the department of hydrometeorology of the Caspian Sea, Doctor of Geography Said Safarov said that if there were no ozone layer, high-frequency radiation, including ultraviolet rays, would create impossible conditions for Living creatures. The main feature of ozone is that it absorbs ultraviolet rays and prevents them from reaching the Earth's surface. Freon gas is widely used in refrigerators and air conditioners. However, the release of fluorine and chlorine contained in it into the atmosphere leads to a weakening of the ozone layer. Not only freon gas, but also gases emitted by aircraft flying at an altitude of 12-13 kilometers, rockets launched to put artificial satellites into orbit, and an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere also cause a weakening of the ozone layer.
Especially during the summer months, places with a high concentration of gas are extremely harmful to the human body. These gases destroy human lungs. Obligations to prevent the emission of harmful substances into the atmosphere are assigned to countries that have adopted various protocols prepared in this area, and Azerbaijan has joined these documents and is taking measures in this direction.
Leading researcher of the department of climate and agroclimatology, Ph.D. in geography Gasan Nabiev in an interview with AzerTaj emphasized the role of the increasingly developing human economic activity in the reduction of the ozone layer. The cheapness and effectiveness of chlorofluorocarbon compounds, due to the fact that they do not react with other substances, led to their widespread use in industry. Subsequent studies have shown that these substances accumulate in the atmosphere, react with other substances and create substances that destroy the ozone layer. Dangerous freon gases, causing the destruction of the ozone layer, can remain in the atmosphere for 70-100 years.
According to the scientist, in 1987 more than 200 countries signed the Montreal Protocol. According to this protocol, the use of chlorofluorocarbon compounds is prohibited. However, despite the adoption of this document, the full result has not been achieved. Countries have begun to use other materials in refrigerators that do not destroy the stratosphere, but these materials have caused global warming. In 2016, the Kigali Amendment was added to the Montreal Protocol. As a result, the ozone layer was saved. The use of chlorofluorocarbons has decreased by 5 times compared to 1980 to the present.