UN says earth's ozone layer is healing

Earth's protective ozone layer is finally healing from damage caused by aerosol sprays and coolants, a new United Nations report has said.

The ozone layer had been thinning since the late 1970s. Scientists raised the alarm and ozone-depleting chemicals were phased out worldwide.

As a result, the upper ozone layer above the northern hemisphere should be completely repaired in the 2030s and the gaping Antarctic ozone hole should disappear in the 2060s, according to a scientific assessment released Monday at a conference in Quito, Ecuador.

The southern hemisphere lags a bit and its ozone layer should be healed by mid-century.

"It's really good news," said report co-chairman Paul Newman, chief Earth scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre.

"If ozone-depleting substances had continued to increase, we would have seen huge effects. We stopped that."