International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer

16 Sep
September 16 was designated by the United Nations General Assembly as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer.
This designation was made on December 19, 1994, in commemoration of the date, in 1987, on which nations signed the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

In 1987 representatives from 24 countries met in Montreal and announced to the world that it was time to stop destroying the ozone layer. In so doing, these countries committed themselves, via the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, to rid the world of substances that threaten the ozone layer.
On December 19, 1994, the UN General Assembly proclaimed September 16 to be the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, commemorating the date when the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was signed in 1987. The day was first celebrated on September 16, 1995.

This commemoration around the world offers an opportunity to focus attention and action at the global, regional and national levels on the protection of the ozone layer.

The Ozone Layer is the protective layer of naturally occurring gas, comprised of three atoms of oxygen found about 10 – 50 km above the earth's surface that protects us from the harmful ultraviolet radiation or UV-B rays of sun. Scientist in the 1970’s discovered that the layer was thinning as a result of the release of CFC’s, consequently, the Ozone Hole developed. In 1985, nations around the world convened at Vienna in an attempt to develop a framework for co-operative activities to protect the Ozone layer. This signed agreement became known as the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer.

The UNEP is monitoring compliance with the programmes of the international treaties aimed at eliminating the production and use of ozone-depleting substances, including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), used as industrial refrigerants and in aerosols, and the pesticide methyl bromide.