[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6823]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO DR. F. SHERWOOD ROWLAND

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. HENRY A. WAXMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 15, 2012

  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me today in 
honoring Dr. F. Sherwood Rowland, who was born on June 28, 1927, in 
Delaware, Ohio, and who passed away on March 10, 2012, at his home in 
Corona del Mar, California, at the age of 84.
  Professor Rowland was a giant in the scientific community. Along with 
his colleague Dr. Mario Molina, he discovered the serious threat to the 
earth's ozone layer posed by man-made chemicals called 
chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs. These supposedly harmless chemicals were 
being released from aerosol sprays, refrigerators, and air 
conditioners. In their 1974 paper published in Nature, the two 
scientists showed that CFCs were depleting the planet's protective 
stratospheric ozone layer. They found that CFCs rose into the 
stratosphere, where they were broken apart by powerful ultraviolet rays 
and released chlorine atoms. The chlorine destroyed the ozone molecules 
protecting the planet's surface from harmful ultraviolet radiation.
  Sherry Rowland recognized that the depletion of the ozone layer ``was 
not just a scientific question, but a potentially grave environmental 
problem.'' Increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation meant more cases 
of skin cancer and eye damage, as well as harm to plant and marine 
life.
  Sherry Rowland spoke out about this danger to the ozone layer and 
argued for a ban on CFCs. Over the years, he did hundreds of press 
interviews and testified before Congress and state legislatures time 
and time again.
  Professor Rowland persevered despite efforts to discredit his work. 
Scientific societies withdrew their invitations for him to speak about 
his research. And industry attacked him personally. In 1977, the 
president of one aerosol manufacturing company claimed that criticism 
of CFCs was ``orchestrated by the Ministry of Disinformation of the 
KGB.''
  But Professor Rowland was ultimately vindicated by both his fellow 
scientists and the international community. In 1983, a British 
Antarctic Survey team confirmed the existence of a hole in the ozone 
layer above Antarctica. Four years later, the Montreal Protocol was 
signed. This landmark treaty phased out the production and use of CFCs. 
The ozone layer is now expected to fully recover around the middle of 
the century.
  In 1995, Dr. Rowland received the recognition he deserved when he 
shared the Nobel Prize for Chemistry with Dr. Molina and Dr. Paul 
Crutzen for their ozone layer work.
  Sherry Rowland's life stands as a testament to the critical role of 
scientific discovery in the development of wise and effective 
government policy.
  One need only ponder what the world would be like today without the 
work and voice of Sherry Rowland to appreciate the magnitude of his 
contributions. Please join me in celebrating the life of Dr. Sherry 
Rowland, a man who literally helped save the world.

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