Green greetings from Russia! I hope you are all in good health!
May 11, Monday-world melanoma day (date for 2020). It is celebrated on the second Monday in may. The goal is to highlight the growing prevalence of malignant melanoma.

At first glance, it may seem that this is not an environmental, but a medical topic. However, in my report, I will prove that the incidence of melanoma is directly related to the environmental situation on the planet.
As you know, without the Sun, life on our planet would be impossible. This is a fact. However, the Sun, like fire, can not only give light and heat, but also cause irreparable harm.

Under the influence of ultraviolet solar radiation and the Earth's electrostatic field, ozone is formed in the high layers of the atmosphere, which then forms the ozone layer. It is a shield that protects all life. Thanks to it, only a small part of the harsh ultraviolet radiation harmful to the human body reaches the surface of the planet.

In the mid-1980s, scientists confirmed and widely publicized the fact that a number of widely used chemicals (chlorofluorocarbons) are extremely dangerous to the ozone layer.

The thickness of the ozone layer is currently decreasing. This means that more and more of the UV radiation reaches our planet. And the more UV radiation reaches the Earth, the greater the risk of the population getting melanoma.

Doctors are sounding the alarm: recently, the incidence of melanoma has increased significantly. The incidence of melanoma in Australia is 40 per 100,000 population, which is the highest rate in the world. This proves once again that we need to take care of the ozone layer. After all, it is no secret that the ozone layer over Australia is damaged the most.
For the first time, the "ozone hole" was discovered over Antarctica. In 1984 George Farman, a member of the British Antarctic expedition, noted a 40% decrease in stratospheric ozone concentrations over the Halley Bay station in Antarctica. When updating data from the nimbus satellite (USA), it turned out that the reduction of ozone concentration over Antarctica has been going on for 10 years.

The problem of destroying The earth's ozone layer is close to me not only because I am not indifferent to environmental problems and am a regional Ambassador of Tunza. There is also a personal reason.
In 2009, my grandmother Tatiana, whom I loved very much, died of melanoma. I was only 9 years old at the time, and I did not understand the causes of this disease. And I certainly didn't understand the connection between melanoma and the thickness of the ozone layer. It was only years later that I learned from the scientific literature that there was a connection. And it's the tightest. Harmful effects of ultraviolet light are one of the factors in the development of melanoma.
Take care of yourself and your loved ones!