--- Chuck McManis <cmcmanis_at_mcmanis.com> wrote:
> At 11:44 PM 9/13/00 -0400, you wrote:
> >I've heard that Freon...isn't nearly as dangerous as it's made out to
> >be, and that the recent legislation to have it banned came about just after
> >the patents expired
>
> It isn't patents, it is the CFC treaty (Osaks?) that bans the production
> (first) and then use (second) of CFCs based on their alleged, but unproven,
> impact on the ozone layer surrounding the earth. Note that I do not dispute
> that there is a gap in the ozone layer around the earth, only that no one
> has yet given anything more than conjecture on why it exists, and since we
> don't have historical data on its existence (or lack thereof) we don't yet
> have anyway of proving or disproving said conjectures, but something that
> _was_ a provable way of saving _actual human lives_ was banned because of
> it. </soapbox>
I have personally worked with scientists from the University of Wyoming and
technicians from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center who directly and indirectly
measure the ozone hole and the chemicals that are harmful to ozone (CFCs,
Bromine compounds, etc.) I have helped launch balloons and collect telemetry
data. No doubt that I'm not an unbiased source, but even though I think CFCs
are nifty compounds at ground level for lots of tasks (cooling, cleaning,
etc.),
at 30,000m, they are not a) natural and b) harmless.
At McMurdo, in spaces with electrical equipment, rather than Halon, there are
built-in C02 fire-supression systems. They are much larger physically, and
harmful to humans, but CO2 poisoning vs. Halon suffocation leave you just as
dead.
-ethan
http://penguincentral.com/ozone.html
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Received on Thu Sep 14 2000 - 11:41:24 BST