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The consequences are already important and they
can end up being tragic. A considerable decrease in the layer of
ozone implies a parallel increase in the quantity of hard
ultraviolet radiation that reaches the surface of the Earth.
For the human beings the immediate consequence is
an increment in the melanoms or skin cancers. The last statistics
reveal that, for example, in the USA an increment of 5 000 annual
cases has taken place, in a population that is around the 220
million inhabitants.
The National Academy of Sciences of the United
States has predicted that a reduction of 10% in the ozone
stratosferic could cause 20% of cancer incidence in the skin.
An excessive exhibition to the ultraviolet
radiation has also been related with the suffering of different
ocular dysfunctions and with the increase of the appearance of
allergic and toxic dermatitis.
It has been checked that the immunologic system
is depressed with the exhibition to the UV high frequency
radiations, that makes more vulnerable especially to children and
people of the third age to the illnesses for virus and bacteri.
Regarding the rest of the alive beings the
incidence can be very diverse since the sensibility of the different
species to this radiation type is not uniform.
Recent studies carried out at laboratory level
have shown that species like tomato, corn, carrot or beet
exposed to this radiation increase the sensibility to the plagues.
It is predicted that long term the fitoplancton
will be very affected what will overturn the alimentary chain in
seas and oceans with disastrous ecological effects, and to medium
term the population's reduction will diminish the yields of the
fishing industry sensibly.
Among the animal species, it affects very seriously to the vision of
the mammals and it can annihilate species like the fresh anchovy,
the trout and others that are very vulnerable in state larvario.
Finally, it has been checked that diverse materials
employees in the building, the communications, electric teams, as
well as artificial fibers, plastics, rubbers and rubbers suffer a
remarkable degradation of their properties and a premature aging for
exhibition to the ultraviolet radiations.
References:
The Green LaneTM,
Environment Canada's World Wide Web site (2005):
http://www.ec.gc.ca/ozone/en/uo/index.cfm
Environmental Effects of Ozone Depletion (1998): Executive Summary.
United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP)
http://www.gcrio.org/UNEP1998/UNEP98.html
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