Ozone plays a key role in shielding animals and plants from ultraviolet radiation.
This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities. Agenda 21 recommends evaluation of the effects of ultraviolet radiation on plants and animals caused by the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer.