text: whats the difference between the greenhouse effect and ozone holes? i have an essay on the differences between the greenhouse effect and ozone holes, does anyone know of any websites or can help me? ozone depletion: there are many chemicals and agents that we use on a daily basis, many people are unaware of the damage these can cause. as these element raise above, they damage the protective layer which keeps oxygen,hydrogen and monoxide in. this protective layer is basically an umbrella to shield us from the harmful rays of the sun...as it is depleted, more and more damaging rays will continue to reach the surface of the earth and cause all types of disease and problems.  green house effect: over the years, ozone depletion has taken it's tole on our icebergs and ice caps. as these begin to melt, our water and sea levels begin to rise. it is like placing a lid on boiling water, steam will begin to boils and thus "global warming" will accrue....... warmth continues to grow faster than we can control and our green earth will begin to dry up, in time we will become a dessert and need more sunscreen just to exist on the surface... " we can't stop the damage that's been done but we can slow it down and allow mother nature to heal....     q. what is the greenhouse effect? is it the same as the ozone hole issue?   a. no, they are two different (but related) issues.the greenhouse effect issue concerns the warming of the lower part of the atmosphere, the troposphere (the layer in which temperature drops with height; it is about 10-15 kilometers thick, varying with latitude and season), by increasing concentrations of the so-called greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, and others) in the troposphere. this warming occurs because the greenhouse gases, while they are transparent to incoming solar radiation, absorb infrared (heat) radiation from the earth that would otherwise escape from the atmosphere into space; the greenhouse gases then re-radiate some of this heat back towards the surface of the earth.  the ozone hole issue concerns the loss of ozone in the upper part of the atmosphere, the stratosphere, resulting from increasing concentrations of certain halogenated hydrocarbons (such as chlorinated fluorocarbons, known as cfcs). through a series of chemical reactions in the stratosphere, the halogenated hydrocarbons destroy ozone in the stratosphere. this is of concern because the ozone blocks incoming ultraviolet radiation from the sun, and portions of the ultraviolet radiation spectrum have been found to have adverse biological effects.  the greenhouse effect and ozone hole issues are, however, related. for example, cfcs are involved in both issues: cfcs, in addition to destroying stratosphere ozone, are also greenhouse gases. it has traditionally been thought there is not much mixing of the troposphere and stratosphere. but there is recent evidence of transport of stratospheric ozone into the troposphere (see "ozone-rich transients in the upper equatorial atlantic troposphere," by suhre et al., nature , vol. 388, 14 august 1997, pages 661-663, and the related discussion paper, "ozone clouds over the atlantic," by crutzen and lawrence, on pages 625-626 in the same issue of nature ). so ozone depletion in the stratosphere could result in reduced concentrations of this greenhouse gas in the troposphere. conversely, global climate change could also affect ozone depletion through changes in stratospheric temperature and water vapor (see "the effect of climate change on ozone depletion through changes in stratospheric water vapour," by kirk-davidoff et al., nature, vol. 402, 25 november 1999, pages 399-401). [rmc]