A country vulnerable to Ozone thinning Dr Kofi Annan, the UN secretary general Chile should be classified as a country that is vulnerable to the thinning of the ozone layer, according to environmental groups that estimate that the incidence of skin cancer in this Southern Cone country has climbed 105 percent since 1992. In the past few days, the hole in the ozone layer in the stratosphere over Antarctica has grown to 24 million square kilometers, nearly reaching Chilean and Argentine territories at the extreme southern tip of the continent. Ozone is a stratospheric gas located 15 to 50 kilometers above the earth s surface, which filters the sun s ultraviolet radiation. Prolonged exposure to the sun s dangerous UV-B radiation increases the risk of loss of eyesight and skin cancer.
Excessive radiation harms fauna and flora, especially marine microorganisms.
Claudio Casiccia, the coordinator of the Ozone Laboratory at the University of Magallanes, in Punta Arenas, said Monday that the situation this year, in terms of the increase in UV-Bradiation, could be as bad as last year. The weather conditions that characterize the early southern hemisphere spring contribute to creating a hole in the ozone layer in September and October. Baquedano said the Chilean government should request to be classified as a vulnerable country according to the Montreal Protocol, which would give it access to resources from the Multilateral Fund set up by the accord to deal with emergencies. We must recognize, as a country, that we are victims of the destruction of the ozone layer, the environmentalist stressed. The Multilateral Fund was set up to help developing nations carry out a recon version of their production systems and replace CFCs with safer products, but no country has yet requested access to its emergency funds.