UN says ozone layer slowly healing, hole to mend by 2066

By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP Science Writer

DENVER (AP) — A United Nations scientific report says Earth’s protective ozone layer is slowly but noticeably healing. Scientists say the hole over Antarctica should be fully mended in about 43 years. Monday’s report is part of what experts call a success story in tackling a big environmental problem. A worldwide treaty in 1987 banned certain classes of chemicals. Those chemicals munch away at ozone about 18 miles high in the air. The level of those chemicals in the upper atmosphere is down. Scientists hope that this success is an example for how to tackle climate change.