He named our age the “Anthropocene” and warned the world of threats that certain chemicals posed to the ozone layer.

Paul J. Crutzen, a Dutch scientist who earned a Nobel Prize for work that warned the world about the threat of chemicals to the planet’s ozone layer and who went on to push for action against global warming, died on Jan. 28 in Mainz, Germany. He was 87.

The Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz announced the death, in a hospital, but did not state the cause. Susanne Benner, a spokeswoman for the institute, said Dr. Crutzen had been treated for Parkinson’s disease.

Martin Stratmann, the president of the Max Planck Society, said in a statement that Dr. Crutzen’s work had led to the ban on ozone-depleting chemicals, “a hitherto unique example of how Nobel Prize-winning basic research can directly lead to a global political decision.”...

The New York Times: Paul Crutzen, Nobel Laureate Who Fought Climate Change, Dies at 87