Our House Doesn’t Have to Be on Fire
You know the world is warming. Our house is on fire. What you may not know is that if the ozone layer could speak, it would tell many tales: of providing us with a liveable planet, of being endangered and saved by humanity. If the ozone layer could talk, it would say how it’s in trouble once again but that like before, humanity can come together and work to change that. Our house doesn’t have to be on fire.
Far over the roofs of our little houses, not quite out of this world but not exactly in it either, the ozone layer can be found in the Earth’s stratosphere. Sometimes called the planet’s sunscreen or blanket, this layer is the security checkpoint of ultraviolet rays, ensuring the Earth is not overwhelmed with the sun’s radiation. Dispersed throughout the stratosphere, ozone molecules tag-team this momentous task, absorbing 98% of the UV, leaving the remaining 2% to filter through and warm the Earth’s surface, providing light and sunshine to us who live here.
40 years ago, the words ‘ozone layer’ were on everyone’s lips. The ozone molecules had a foe – chlorofluorocarbons. First a chemical used in the making of refrigerators but soon a key ingredient across a range of products, chlorofluorocarbons or CFC’s were removing some of the Earth’s sunscreen/blanket, causing the ozone layer to thin in areas. These ‘holes’ as they are called, posed a massive risk to human health and safety. Less and less radiation could be absorbed by a dwindling number of ozone molecules and the sun was bearing down on Earth. Something had to be done and something was. The Montreal Protocol came into play. A commitment to preserve the ozone layer, every country of the world signed an agreement to cease the use of CFC’s. This agreement would allow for the layer to recover and continue to sustain life. It was a heartening act of coming together to save the world and it was a success.
To this day, the Montreal Protocol continues to be front and centre of future policy and environmental headway. In 2016, an amendment to the protocol was made. The Kigali amendment was introduced to address another threat posed to the ozone layer. Hydrofluorocarbons, a relative to CFC’s, are creating havoc in the stratosphere and here on the surface. The HFC’s are intensifying the greenhouse effect, a system which tries to retain the warmth in our house of Earth (like a greenhouse). Thanks to the plethora of gases and emissions in our atmosphere, the planet is heating up at an unprecedented rate introducing to us the great new challenge of the age: the climate, biodiversity and pollution crises, the trio that egg each other on. What could either be a devastating train wreck of suffering or a path to a healthier, more ethical and resilient future is a choice that lies with us and our ability to act swiftly, together.
Joining forces and uniting is not just our only hope for minimising the loss and damages of the triple planetary crisis, but it also provides us with the stellar opportunity to create the world we all want to live to see. We just need to get there. It will be a journey that will take all of us. One made easier by sticking together, paving the way for change and walking the walk, through community efforts and advocacy. If you are lost, turn to a fellow neighbour, friend or us here at Imagine! Finding strength in banding together will be the great key to unlocking this one. Let’s do it! Together we’ll fight the good fight. Our house doesn’t have to be on fire. Together we can put it out.
