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Keeping cans cold is the rub Does the opening of millions of carbonated beverages affect the ozone layer? -- Jim H., White City Unfortunately, Jim, all the major Web sites we researched to answer your question seemed concerned not with opening your Creme Soda or Orange Crush, but keeping it cold. The chemicals used in refrigerators are great at keeping colas icy cold but wreak havoc on the atmosphere. These chemicals, or chlorofluorocarbons, do not cause environmental damage to the air near the ground; but once they slowly rise some 15 to 35 kilometers above the earth's surface, they begin to eat away at the protective ozone layer like caterpillars on cabbage. They'll stay up there, perhaps eating all the while, for up to 100 years. Though countries such as Canada have led the way in reducing ozone-depleting substances, there's still work to be done in the realm of refrigeration. (Send your questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; or by fax to (541) 776-4376; or by e-mail to: [email protected] Please include your name, address and phone number for verification.) Today's News Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA