Off the wire
• Hungary to build fence along Croatian border: PM  • Indian police arrests suspect in assassination of left-wing leader  • French president expresses concerns over clashes at Jerusalem  • Big French business delegation to visit Iran  • Saudi diplomat accused of raping Nepalese women has left India  • Spanish stock market rises 1.99 pct, closes at 9,976 points  • Syrian forces secure hilltops near Damascus international highway  • 293 wildlife sites in Britain at risk from fracking for shale oil: RSPB  • Migrant crisis poses threat to Schengen area: Slovak FM  • Urgent: Gold rallies strongly on soft U.S. inflation  
You are here: 　 Home

Ozone loss stable this year as wold celebrates Int'l Ozone Day: WMO

Xinhua, September 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) celebrated on Wednesday the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer which commemorates the 1987 signing of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

Integral to the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, which became the first convention of any kind to achieve universal ratification in 2009 and which celebrates 30 years of existence this year, the Montreal Protocol has played a crucial role in reducing the production and consumption of ozone depleting substances around the world.

"Together, we have succeeded in putting the stratospheric ozone layer on the road to recovery by the middle of this century," said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in a message, adding that "up to 2 million cases of skin cancer may be prevented each year, along with even more avoided cases of eye cataracts."

The UN head also highlighted that "as we look forward to the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the effort by governments later this year in Paris to forge a new, collective path forward on climate change, the Montreal Protocol's success should inspire us. It shows what we are capable of when nations act together on a global challenge."

According to WMO, which together with its Global Atmosphere Watch network monitors the ozone layer, ozone loss for 2015 is expected to be similar to that of 2013 and 2014, though more significant than in 2010 and 2012. Endit