GENEVA : Protecting the Ozone

U.N. negotiators convene in Switzerland tomorrow to discuss ways of strengthening an international accord to protect the stratospheric ozone layer that protects Earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation.

At issue is a possible speedup in plans to phase out major ozone-depleting chemicals following recent scientific findings that the ozone layer is being depleted much more rapidly than previously thought.

Many countries already have pledged to phase out chlorofluorocarbons, or CFC’s, chemicals used as coolants, by the year 2000 or sooner. Some nations want to move up the deadline to 1995.