The ozone layer is the layer present in the Stratosphere.

It absorbs the harmful ultraviolet

rays that come from the sun.

The ozone layer is present in the lower stratosphere that is near about 20 to 35 kilometers above
the earth.

The ozone layer is referred to as a specific region in the Earth’s stratosphere that acts as a shield
against the incoming ultraviolet rays of the sun

The ozone layer is composed of 3 atoms of oxygen

The stratosphere contains large amounts of ozone. The ultraviolet radiation itself forms the ozone
layer. Ozone forms when a radiation or electrical discharge causes the oxygen (O2) molecule to
split into two different atoms so that they can individually join with other atoms and form ozone
(O3).

Ozone Layer Depletion:

Ozone layer depletion is the gradual thinning of the earth’s ozone layer in the upper atmosphere
caused due to the release of chemical compounds containing gaseous bromine or chlorine from
industries or other human activities.

This happens when the chlorine and bromine atoms in the atmosphere come in contact with
ozone and destroy the ozone molecules. One chlorine can destroy 100,000 molecules of ozone. It
is destroyed more quickly than it is created.

Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS): Some compounds release chlorine and bromine on
exposure to high ultraviolet light, which contributes to ozone layer depletion is called ODS.

The ozone-depleting substances that contain chlorine include chlorofluorocarbon, carbon

tetrachloride, hydrochlorofluorocarbons, and methyl chloroform. Whereas, the ozone-depleting
substances that contain bromine are halons, methyl bromide, and hydro bromofluorocarbons.

Causes of Ozone Layer Depletion:

Ozone layer depletion is a major concern and is associated with a number of factors. The main
causes responsible for the depletion of the ozone layer are as follows:

1) Chlorofluorocarbons:
 Chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs are the main cause of ozone layer depletion. These are
released by solvents, spray aerosols, refrigerators, air-conditioners, etc.
 The molecules of chlorofluorocarbons in the stratosphere are broken down by ultraviolet
radiations and release chlorine atoms. These atoms react with ozone and destroy it.
 2) Unregulated Rocket Launches: Researches say that the unregulated launching of
rockets results in much more depletion of the ozone layer than the CFCs do.

3) Natural Causes of Depletion of the Ozone Layer:

It is found that the ozone layer gets affected by some natural causes that are sun-spots and
stratospheric winds. these cause a very nominal contribution to the ozone layer depletion which
is near about 1 to 2 percent and therefore these effects are temporary.

Some major volcanic eruptions have also contributed to the depletion of the ozone layer. Two of
them are (Chichon in 1983) and another one is (Mt. Pinatubo in 1991).

4) Man-made Causes of Depletion of the Ozone Layer:

Human activities are the main cause of the depletion of the ozone layer. It occurs due to the
excessive use of the man-made chemicals that are bromine and chlorine which release from the
man-made compounds such as: Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons),
Halon , CH3CCl3 (Methyl chloroform), CCl4 (Carbon tetrachloride), H CFCs (hydro-
chlorofluorocarbons), Chlorofluorocarbons , Methyl bromide.

Effects of Ozone Layer Depletion:

1) Effect on Human Beings:
 If the ozone layer gets depleted, more UV rays enter the atmosphere. When these UV
rays come in contact with the human skin, it can cause malignant skin cancers.
 In our body, Vitamin D is synthesized when it reacts with UV rays. Excess vitamin D can
also raise blood calcium levels, increasing mortality rates.
 It also causes sunburn. UV radiations are also identified to play a role in breast cancer
and leukaemia. It also affects the immune system.

2) Effect on Animals:
 High UV rays have shown that there has been epidermal damage in whales due to the
thinning of the ozone layer.
 Direct exposure to ultraviolet radiations leads to skin and eye cancer in animals

3) Effect on Plants:

Increased UV rays can affect plant life by damaging them under extreme exposure to UV rays.
Plant growth will be affected as well. It affects the total vegetation of an area, reducing the life
span of many plants.
 The ozone enters opening pores present in the epidermis of plants called the stomata. This
stomata functions as a medium of gas exchange and photosynthesis. Damage in stomata causes a
threat to the survival of plants. Ozone also negatively affects the moisture content of the soil,
insects etc.

Control Measures:
1) Avoid Using ODS:

Reduce the use of ozone depleting substances. E.g. avoid the use of CFCs in refrigerators and air
conditioners, replacing the halon based fire extinguishers, etc.

2) Minimize the Use of Vehicles:

The vehicles emit a large amount of greenhouse gases that lead to global warming as well as
ozone depletion. Therefore, the use of vehicles should be minimized as much as possible.

3) Use Eco-friendly Cleaning Products:

Most of the cleaning products have chlorine and bromine releasing chemicals that find a way
into the atmosphere and affect the ozone layer. These should be substituted with natural products
to protect the environment.

4) Less use of pesticides:

pesticides helps in growing your farms and plants but cause harm to the ozone layer and contribute
to ozone layer depletion.

Biomagnification:
Biomagnification can be defined as the rise or increase in the contaminated substances caused by
the intoxicating environment.

The contaminants might be heavy metals such as mercury, arsenic, and pesticides such as
polychlorinated biphenyls and DDT.

These substances are taken up by the organisms through the food they consume. When the
organisms in the higher food chain feed on the organisms in the lower food chain containing
these toxins, these toxins get accumulated in the higher organisms.

Example:

 The bioaccumulation mechanism is best explained by mercury pollution.

 Mercury (or methylmercury, a chemical equivalent) is typically taken up by bacteria and
phytoplankton.
 Mercury is accumulated by little fish, which feed bacteria and phytoplankton.
  Larger fish eat the little fish, which can then become food for people and animals.
 Large amounts of mercury can build up (biomagnification) in human and animal tissue as
a result.

Causes of Biomagnification:
1) Agriculture:
 Agricultural pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers, among other
agricultural chemicals, are extremely harmful and frequently find their way into soils,
rivers, lakes, and the seas
 Heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, mercury, copper, and lead can be found in
agricultural inputs such as pesticides, industrial waste, some fertilizers, and specific
agrochemical products.
 When these compounds are consumed and accumulate in the bodily tissues of humans
and aquatic animals such as fish, they have serious health consequences.
2) Industrial Manufacturing Activities and Pollution:
 Industries' manufacturing operations release hazardous and harmful compounds into the
soils, rivers, lakes, and oceans, either indirectly or directly.
 Industrial operations contaminate the environment in a variety of ways, including by
emitting or discharging harmful pollutants into the environment, which enter the food
chain and accumulate.
3) Mining Activities in the Ocean:
 Mining activities in the deep sea to harvest minerals and metal ores such as zinc, cobalt,
silver, aluminum, and gold devastate the oceans and coastal regions.
 They create sulphide and selenium deposits in the waterways.
 Toxic levels build up in ocean species, which are subsequently devoured by organism

Effects of Biomagnification:

 Biomagnification makes humans more prone to cancer, kidney problems, liver failure,
birth defects, respiratory disorders, and heart diseases.
 The toxic chemicals accumulate in the important organs of aquatic organisms that affect
their reproduction and development processes.

For eg., the shells of the eggs of the sea-birds are very thin that might get crushed by the
birds themselves during incubation. The toxic chemicals, mercury and selenium destroy the
reproductive organs of aquatic creatures.

 Cyanide that is used in leaching gold and fishing is the main cause of the destruction of
coral reefs. Coral reefs are the dwelling and feeding grounds for many sea creatures.
Their destruction affects the lives of many aquatic animals.
Bioremediation:
 Is a type of biotechnical waste management process used to clean polluted water and
soil. The process of bioremediation involves the use of microorganisms such as
bacteria, fungi, etc
 Various polluted areas such as polluted soil, water, municipal water tanks, sewage
water, etc are cleaned through this method. This is an eco-friendly method.
 It is a biotechnical method to clean the environment in an eco-friendly manner. The
microorganisms used in this process utilize the pollutant as their source of energy or
food and thus they consume the pollutant and clean our environment

Process of Bioremediation:

 Environmental pollution is very harmful to human beings . Air pollution is the cause of
various respiratory diseases. Soil or land pollution affects our agricultural sectors.

 To remove these pollutants various toxic chemicals were used. To reduce the use of
such toxic chemicals, bioremediation was used as an alternative way.

 In this process of bioremediation, biological microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi,

and small plants are used which use the pollutants as their resource and convert the
pollutants into non-toxic substances.
 The microorganisms require a specific atmosphere to start their work. At an optimum
temperature, pH and in presence of required moisture, the microorganisms use the
pollutants as their resource or food.
 They consume the food and to break their food into simpler form they secrete various
enzymes. The enzymes convert the pollutants into nutrients.
 At the end of this process, the pollutants are converted into carbon-dioxide, non toxic
acids and water. Thus, the microbes help to eliminate or reduce various pollutants from
our environment.

Types of Bioremediation:

Various bioremediation techniques are used to clean the contaminated water and soil. Some of
them are as follows:

1) Biostimulation:

In this process, the growth of microbes or bacteria are stimulated to clean the pollutant. At
first, the contaminated water or soil is mixed with specific nutrients and these nutrients
stimulate the growth of bacteria or microbes. the large quantity of microbes perform quick
cleaning of the contaminants.

2) Bioaugmentation:

In this process, specific cultured microbes are added to the polluted water or soil. These
microbes then clean the polluted environment by degrading the pollutants. To treat the
municipal wastewater, bioaugmentation is used. To control the growth
of microorganisms becomes challenging in this process.

3) Intrinsic Bioremediation:

This method is mainly used to treat underground places such as petroleum tanks. Because, it is
difficult to detect any leakage in such underground places. So, using microbes to clean such
underground tanks is an efficient method.