Why Don't We Hear About the Ozone Hole Anymore?

• This video from Hot Mess explains the remarkable success of the Montreal Protocol in banning the production of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and other ozone-depleting substances. 
• The video draws a comparison between our response to the ozone hole and the potential for similar action in the context of halting greenhouse gas emissions.
  

Positives

• This video offers a rare and hopeful glimpse at what it looks like when environmental policy works on a global level. 
• The video highlights the fact that the Montreal Protocol was successful, in large part, because it required wealthier countries to support economically disadvantaged countries in phasing out CFCs. 
  

Additional Prerequisites

• The video begins with an advertisement. 
• Though the ozone hole is just beginning to heal, the video may give the false impression that the ozone hole is nearly gone. 
• Students will benefit from having some prior knowledge about climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, fossil fuels, and the Paris Climate Agreement. 

Differentiation

• Civics classes could compare and contrast the Montreal Protocol with the Paris Agreement. 
• Economics classes could examine how the EPA's ban on CFCs created economic opportunities for companies to produce alternative chemicals, although many of those new chemicals also ended up being very powerful greenhouse gases. 
• Chemistry classes could take a closer look at the chemical reactions that occur between CFCs and ozone.
• Other resources on this topic include Essentials of Environmental Science: Understanding the Atmosphere, Climate Politics, and Creating a Safer World: Achieving the Paris Agreement Target.