When did the pollution start hurting the earth?

Answer 1

Some of the ozone hole is natural. Some of the depletion of ozone is due to "natural factors". Manmade chemicals seem to be concentrated in regions of low ozone concentration, and these have been otherwise shown to destroy ozone. Man also dumps water vapor high in the atmosphere, and water vapor also destroys ozone. Assessing the damage we have done to the ozone layer will be hard to do without more data. We had a record sized ozone hole (2006) and we have not decreased too much percentage-wise since then (2008). But we simply don't know how much we are responsible for. Does it matter? We are not required to feel guilty. We are stewards. This is our home. We know what we have to do to help Nature repair the damage (and any damage is reversible, hopefully without eliminating Man first).

Answer 2

There are actually two areas we consider holes in the ozone layer. These occur naturally at the end of each winter over each pole. They are due primarily because of the lack of sunlight reacting with the oxygen in the atmosphere.

These holes have been occurring, as far as we can tell, since oxygen was in our atmosphere. The largest hole that we know of occurred in 1859.

See the related questions section below.

Answer 3

Though in 1974 a laboratory study already demonstrated the capability of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to breakdown ozone, the first discovery of an actual ozone layer hole was not until 1985 when scientists Joseph Farman, Brian Gardiner, and Jonathan Shanklin of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) published a paper about their findings of such a hole at Antarctica in Naturemagazine.

Answer 4

About the time the Industrial Revolution began.

Answer 5

As soon as you began to touch yourself.. Nice job.

Answer 6

The damage was discovered in 1985. It was discovered by Dr. Farman.

Answer 7

Ozone depletion is the process where ozone holes are created in the ozone layer. It is caused due to the action of chloro-floro-carbons on the ozone molecule to break it down to oxygen.