The consequences of the thinning of the ozone layer are life-threatening on a global scale. They include greater incidence of skin cancer, suppression of the body's immune systems, reduced crop yields, and increased threats to marine life because of the sensitivity of phytoplankton to ultraviolet rays. Since then, it has increased to 350 ppm and is presently increasing at 2.5 ppm per year. The consequences would be immense. They would include a substantial rise in sea level which would be catastrophic for low-lying areas, especially if coupled with greater probability of storm surges.
Caribbean islands depend heavily on their beaches for employment and foreign exchange.
Yet their beaches average only one meter for every centimeter rise in sea levels. Other countries could lose coastal areas containing much of their population and economic wealth. Some islands would be threatened by extinction. 3 Global warming would also increase the likelihood of droughts and, therefore, of desertification in agricultural areas the world over. On the other hand, it could encourage agriculture to migrate closer to the poles as summer growing seasons lengthened.