THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
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Ozone ‘depletion’ a DuPont manipulation 

Ozone ‘depletion’ a DuPont manipulation 

Re: “Is the Ozone layer thinning?”, The Nation, February 23

The notion that CFCs deplete the ozone layer is scientific fraud that was promoted by the DuPont chemical company in the 1980s. Why? Because their patent for freon was ending, which meant that all those manufactures of air conditioners and refrigerators could now buy this stuff cheaper from any of their competitors – they came up with new chemicals that can be used in the same way. 
A quick look at the science: Ozone is formed over the troposphere when the sun’s UV rays contact oxygen (O2) in the upper atmosphere, creating three oxygen atoms – Ozone (O3). The reason there is less ozone (not a “hole”) at the poles is because there are very few UV rays there. Ozone is naturally unstable and when a chlorine molecule comes into contact with it, it breaks down back into O2.
This is a naturally recurring process that is constantly occurring. So the theory is that the chlorine from CFCs will drift up there and do all this damage. The problem with the theory is that every year, more than 340 million tonnes of chlorine is naturally pumped into the atmosphere from the oceans, thunderstorms, volcanoes, and burning wood.
What started off as a scam promoted by a single corporation morphed into a pseudo-environmental agenda that scores scientific grant money. So this nonsense continues 40 years later. 
The “decrease” in ozone that these scientists claim is always so small that it is within the margin of error – they usually claim a less than 3-per-cent decrease. 
Sam Khoury
Bangkok 

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