User:Gaby.pena94/sandbox

This layer of the atmosphere contains the ozone layer and the highest proportion of ozone gas that helps to absorb most of the ultraviolet rays that our planet receives from the sun. Unfortunately, in the early 1980s a significant drop in the stratospheric ozone became evident during the spring in the South Polar region to the point where a "hole" began to appear above the Antarctic. In the last 25 years, the ozone layer has thinned by 4%. This is linked to the production of chemicals by humans.

Some impacts of the ozone hole on human health and ecosystems include:
 * Development of skin cancer.
 * Severe exposure to UV rays is dangerous to the eyes increasing incidence of cataracts in particular.
 * UV rays can affect our immune systems, lowering resistance to diseases and reducing the effectiveness of vaccines.
 * Increase of UVs have negative effect on plant growth, lower yields from some plants and cereal crops and falling plankton populations.