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Ozone depletion, ultraviolet radiation, climate change and prospects for a sustainable future

Nature Sustainability volume 2, pages 569–579 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

Changes in stratospheric ozone and climate over the past 40-plus years have altered the solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation conditions at the Earth’s surface. Ozone depletion has also contributed to climate change across the Southern Hemisphere. These changes are interacting in complex ways to affect human health, food and water security, and ecosystem services. Many adverse effects of high UV exposure have been avoided thanks to the Montreal Protocol with its Amendments and Adjustments, which have effectively controlled the production and use of ozone-depleting substances. This international treaty has also played an important role in mitigating climate change. Climate change is modifying UV exposure and affecting how people and ecosystems respond to UV; these effects will become more pronounced in the future. The interactions between stratospheric ozone, climate and UV radiation will therefore shift over time; however, the Montreal Protocol will continue to have far-reaching benefits for human well-being and environmental sustainability.

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Fig. 1: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) addressed by the UNEP Environmental Effects Assessment Panel 2018 Quadrennial Report.
Fig. 2: Links between stratospheric ozone depletion, UV radiation and climate change.

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Acknowledgements

This work has been supported by the UNEP Ozone Secretariat, and we thank T. Birmpili and S. Mylona for their guidance and assistance. Additional support was provided by the US Global Change Research Program (P.W.B., C.E.W. and S.M.), the J. H. Mullahy Endowment for Environmental Biology (P.W.B.), the US National Science Foundation (grants DEB 1360066 and DEB 1754276 to C.E.W.), the Australian Research Council (DP180100113 to S.A.R.) and the University of Wollongong’s Global Challenges Program (S.A.R.). We appreciate the contributions from other UNEP EEAP members and co-authors of the EEAP Quadrennial Report, including: M. Ilyas, Y. Takizawa, F. L. Figueroa, H. H. Redhwi and A. Torikai. Special thanks to A. Netherwood for his assistance in drafting and improving figures. This paper has been reviewed in accordance with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (US EPA) peer and administrative review policies and approved for publication. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation for use by the US EPA.

Author information

Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Paul W. Barnes, Craig E. Williamson, Robyn M. Lucas, Sharon A. Robinson, Sasha Madronich, Nigel D. Paul.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences and Environment Program, Loyola University New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, USA

    Paul W. Barnes

  2. Department of Biology, Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA

    Craig E. Williamson

  3. National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

    Robyn M. Lucas

  4. Centre for Sustainable Ecosystem Solutions, School of Earth, Atmosphere and Life Sciences & Global Challenges Program, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia

    Sharon A. Robinson

  5. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA

    Sasha Madronich

  6. Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK

    Nigel D. Paul & Paul J. Young

  7. Food Futures Institute, Murdoch University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

    Janet F. Bornman

  8. Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Alkiviadis F. Bais

  9. Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland

    Barbara Sulzberger

  10. Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry, School of Earth, Atmosphere and Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia

    Stephen R. Wilson

  11. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA

    Anthony L. Andrady

  12. National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, Central Otago, New Zealand

    Richard L. McKenzie

  13. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD, USA

    Patrick J. Neale

  14. Faculty of Agronomy and IFEVA-CONICET, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Amy T. Austin & Carlos L. Ballaré

  15. Biospherical Instruments Inc., San Diego, CA, USA

    Germar H. Bernhard

  16. School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada

    Keith R. Solomon

  17. QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Herston, Queensland, Australia

    Rachel E. Neale

  18. Biomedical Sciences, University of Edinburgh Medical School, Edinburgh, UK

    Mary Norval

  19. Centre for Dermatology Research, The University of Manchester and Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK

    Lesley E. Rhodes

  20. Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden

    Samuel Hylander

  21. Department of Biological Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, USA

    Kevin C. Rose

  22. The Institute for Global Risk Research, Bethesda, MD, USA

    Janice Longstreth

  23. Ptersa Environmental Consultants, Faerie Glen, South Africa

    Pieter J. Aucamp

  24. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Rose M. Cory

  25. Department of Forest, Rangeland, and Fire Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA

    Stephan D. Flint

  26. Department of Dermatology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands

    Frank R. de Gruijl

  27. Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany

    Donat-P. Häder

  28. Finnish Meteorological Institute R&D/Climate Research, Helsinki, Finland

    Anu M. Heikkilä

  29. School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

    Marcel A. K. Jansen

  30. Institute of Wood Science and Technology, Bengaluru, India

    Krishna K. Pandey

  31. Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, Vikki Plant Science Centre, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    T. Matthew Robson

  32. Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

    Craig A. Sinclair

  33. Department of Marine Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden

    Sten-Åke Wängberg

  34. CIESIN, Columbia University, New Hartford, CT, USA

    Robert C. Worrest

  35. Centre for Ophthalmology and Visual Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

    Seyhan Yazar

  36. St. John’s Institute of Dermatology, King’s College London, London, UK

    Antony R. Young

  37. US Environmental Protection Agency, Athens, GA, USA

    Richard G. Zepp

Authors
  1. Paul W. Barnes
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  2. Craig E. Williamson
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Contributions

All authors helped in the development and review of this paper. The lead authors P.W.B., C.E.W., R.M.L., S.A.R., S.M. and N.D.P. played major roles in conceptualizing and writing the document. P.W.B. organized and coordinated the paper and integrated comments and revisions on all the drafts. C.E.W., R.M.L., J.F.B., A.F.B., B.S., S.R.W. and A.L.A. provided content with the assistance of S.M., S.A.R., G.H.B., R.L.M., P.J.A., A.M.H., P.J.Y. (stratospheric ozone effects on UV and ozone-driven climate change), R.E.N., F.R.deG., M.N., L.E.R., C.A.S., S.Y., A.R.Y. (human health), P.W.B., S.A.R., C.L.B., S.D.F., M.A.K.J., T.M.R. (agriculture and terrestrial ecosystems), P.J.N., S.H., K.C.R., R.M.C., D.-P.H., S-Å.W., R.C.W. (fisheries and aquatic ecosystems), A.T.A., R.G.Z. (biogeochemistry and contaminants), K.R.S., J.L. (air quality and toxicology) and K.K.P. (materials). R.L.M. conducted the UV simulation modelling.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Paul W. Barnes.

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Barnes, P.W., Williamson, C.E., Lucas, R.M. et al. Ozone depletion, ultraviolet radiation, climate change and prospects for a sustainable future. Nat Sustain 2, 569–579 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-019-0314-2

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