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2011JapanTsunamiUnleashedOzoneDestroyingChemicals

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2011JapanTsunamiUnleashedOzoneDestroying
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byBeckyOskin,SeniorWriter|April03,201503:06pmET

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The2011tsunamithatstruckJapanreleasedthousandsoftonsof
ozonedestroyingchemicalsandgreenhousegasesintotheair,a
newstudyshows.
Thankstothecountry'sstrictbuildingcodes,theenormous
magnitude9TohokuearthquakeleftJapan'shomesand
businessesrelativelyuntouched.Buttheearthquaketriggereda
deadlytsunamithatroaredthroughcoastalcitiesandvillages,
destroyingalmost300,000buildings,accordingtotheNational
PoliceAgencyofJapan.

Anaerialviewofdamageto
Sukuiso,Japan,aweekafterthe
earthquakeandsubsequenttsunamidevastatedthe
areainMarch,2011.
Credit:DylanMcCord.U.S.Navy
Viewfullsizeimage

Thedamagedinsulation,refrigerators,airconditionersand
electricalequipmentunleashed7,275tons(6,600metrictons)of
halocarbons,thestudyreported.Halocarbonemissionsroseby
91percentovertypicallevelsintheyearfollowingthe
earthquake,saidTakuyaSaito,leadstudyauthorandsenior
researcherattheNationalInstituteforEnvironmentalStudiesin
Tsukuba,Japan.[InPictures:JapanEarthquake&Tsunami]

"Itwasnotasingle,shorttermpulse,"Saitosaid.
ThesixhalocarbonsmeasuredinthestudyareagroupofchemicalsthatattacktheEarth'sprotectiveozone
layerandcanalsocontributetoglobalwarming.Thehalocarbonsincludebannedgasessuchas
chlorofluorocarbons(CFCs),aswellashydrochlorofluorocarbons(HCFCs),whicharebeingphasedoutof
use.Theresearchersalsofoundsignificantincreasesinhydrofluorocarbons(HFCs)andsulfurhexafluoride,
bothgreenhousegases.
EmissionsofthebannedchemicalCFC11were72percenthigherthanbeforetheMarch11,2011,
earthquake."Thiswassurprisingtous,becauseithadbeenbannedinJapan15yearsbeforethedisaster,"
SaitotoldLiveScienceinanemailinterview."Wehadalmostforgottenthefactthatthisozonedepletinggas
stillexistsaroundus."
About50percentofthehalocarbonemissionsaftertheearthquakewereofHCFC22.Itsconcentrationrose
by38percentbetweenFebruary2011andMarch2012,thestudyreported.EmissionsofHFC134aand
HFC32roseby49percentand63percentcomparedtotheyearsbeforethequake.
SaitoandhiscolleagueslaunchedthestudyafternoticingunusuallyhighemissionsofthehalocarbonHFC
32atCapeOchiishiinHokkaido,Japan,followingtheearthquake.Theresearchershavestudiedatmospheric
halocarbonsatthissitesince2006,Saitosaid.Theresearchersthentookairmonitoringdatafromseveral
stationsinJapanandusedatmosphericmodelingtodeterminehowmuchoftheemissionswereduetothe
2011earthquakeandtsunami.
ThefindingswerepublishedMarch12inthejournalGeophysicalResearchLetters.
Althoughtheglobaleffectofthisoneeventissmall,nocountriesaccountfornaturaldisasters,suchas
earthquakesandtsunamis,intheirannualestimatesofgreenhousegasreleasestotheatmosphere."Itis
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2011JapanTsunamiUnleashedOzoneDestroyingChemicals

apparentthatthereareunreportedemissions,"Saitosaid.
Thenewstudyshowsitmaybenecessarytoincludetheamountofhalocarbonsreleasedbycatastrophic
eventsinemissionsestimates,SteveMontzka,aresearchchemistattheNationalOceanicandAtmospheric
AdministrationinBoulder,Colorado,whowasnotinvolvedintheresearch,saidinastatement.
Basedonglobalhalocarbonemissionestimates,theextraemissionsfromthe2011Tohokuearthquakewould
accountfor4percentorlessoftotalglobalhalocarbons,Saitosaid.Andthehalocarbonswereweak
contributorstoglobalwarmingcomparedtocarbondioxideandmethane.Thegasesreleasedbythetsunami
accountedforlessthan1percentofgreenhousegasemissionsintheyearfollowingtheearthquake.
FollowBeckyOskin@beckyoskin.FollowLiveScience@livescience,Facebook&Google+.Originally
publishedonLiveScience.

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AuthorBio

BeckyOskin
BeckyOskinisaseniorwriterforLiveScience.Shecoversearthscience,climatechangeandspace,aswell
asgeneralsciencetopics.BeckywasasciencereporteratThePasadenaStarNewsandhasfreelancedfor
NewScientistandtheAmericanInstituteofPhysics.Sheearnedamaster'sdegreeingeologyfromCaltech,a
bachelor'sdegreefromWashingtonStateUniversity,andagraduatecertificateinsciencewritingfromthe
UniversityofCalifornia,SantaCruz.
BeckyOskinon

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