Good Ozone/Bad Ozone

People are sometimes confused when they hear that on the one hand the destruction of the ozone layer is dangerous to our planet, but on the other hand ozone itself is hazardous. The difference is not in the ozone, but in where the ozone is. This section focuses on "ground-level" ozone, which is hazardous to living beings. But you need to know about the "good" ozone in the atmosphere, too.

Stratospheric ozone is created by the sun's radiation. Stratospheric ozone makes up a layer in the atmosphere that absorbs most of the high-energy ultraviolet radiation from the sun. This layer is sometimes called the ozonosphere. Life on earth would not exist without the presence of this ozone shield. Destruction of part of the ozonosphere by certain human-made chemicals allows more ultraviolet radiation to reach the earth's surface.