13 April 2007
At the invitation of the Ozone Secretariat of the United Nations Environment Programme, Dr. David W. Fahey of CSD is speaking at an international workshop being held April 12-18 in Singapore to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the U.N. Montreal Protocol that protects the ozone layer. Members of the international press as well as several dignitaries involved in ozone-layer issues and the Montreal Protocol are expected to be in attendance at the workshop.
Dave served as Lead Author of the chapter on Twenty Questions and Answers About the Ozone Layer: 2006 Update that was a part of the recently published 2006 international scientific assessment on stratospheric ozone. At the workshop, he will talk about that chapter and give an overview of the science related to stratospheric ozone depletion. Copies of the chapter, which was published as a separate booklet as well as with the full 2006 assessment report, will be available.
Background: The year 2007 marks the celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. This international treaty has been ratified by 191 countries, with the aim of protecting the ozone layer and preventing the harmful effects of excessive ultraviolet radiation at Earth's surface. UNEP is holding activities throughout the year in several different countries.
Dave has served as Lead Author of the "Twenty Questions and Answers" section of the ozone assessment both in the previous report (2002) and in the most recent 2006 report. The Twenty Questions booklet is of great interest to the scientific community, but has been especially useful to educators, students, the general public, and decision makers who want to get an overview of the topic of ozone depletion. Thousands of copies of the 2002 Twenty Questions booklet have been distributed, and similar interest is expected for the 2006 booklet. Dave received an OAR Outstanding Publication award for his work on this for the 2002 report. The booklet as well as the full 2006 assessment report are published in full on the website below.
Significance: This effort is a part of NOAA's work in the Climate Forcing Program of the Climate Goal. It directly addresses NOAA's mission to promote environmental literacy, both within the U.S. and in the international arena.