The decomposition of Earth’s ozone layer has been a long-standing issue. This layer protects the Earth and its inhabitants from solar radiation. “Regular oxygen molecules, known to science-types as O2, are made up of two oxygen atoms stuck together. Solar energy shoots in from space and splits that molecule into two atoms. When one of those stray atoms attaches to a full-fledged O2 molecule, you've got, well, O3, otherwise known as ozone. All that action blocks solar radiation, and keeps it from reaching us.” explains NASA.

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Solar radiation can be very harmful to earth, particularly the ultraviolet rays that can cause significant skin damage. Skin cancer is already extremely prevalent; if the ozone layer disappears, rates will only increase.  Another problem would be plants and photosynthesis, which would in turn mess up the entire food chain. That in itself is enough to have a detrimental effect on many species, including humans. More animal species are becoming endangered every day and  if the food chain were to shift in any way, we could see a many more animals become extinct. The question is: how do we protect the ozone layer? The answer is simple-decrease the amount of pollution we produce.

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Unfortunately, a new threat has been found. Industrial emissions have doubled in the past few years, caused by a chemical commonly used in solvents, paint removers, and the production of pharmaceuticals. This could slow the healing of the ozone layer over Antarctica anywhere between 5 and 30 years.

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The compound, dichloromethane, is produced very little naturally, so the increase in emissions have been anthropogenic. It is produced when making PVC, which China is a big producer of. It has become 60 percent more abundant over the past decade according to ScienceDaily. Oram, a research fellow of the UK's National Centre for Atmospheric Science suspects that China is responsible for 50-60 percent of the global emissions. Other Asian countries are suspected to be major contributors as well, including India. This is because of cold-air surges that can rapidly carry industrial pollution into the tropics where it is most likely uplifted into the stratosphere meaning that chemicals reach the ozone layer before they are degraded so they will cause damage.

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If these compounds reach the ozone layer in large quantities, rather than staying at lower elevations, they could cause significant damage. Decreasing emissions is still the best option to combating environmental and health issues.