Hawaii To Ban Certain Sunscreens To Protect Coral Reefs (npr.org)

Hawaii lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday that would prohibit the sale of over-the-counter sunscreens containing chemicals they say are contributing to the destruction of the state's coral reefs and other ocean life. NPR reports: The chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate, which are used in more than 3,500 of the world's most popular sunscreen products, including Hawaiian Tropic, Coppertone and Banana Boat, would be prohibited. Prescription sunscreens containing those chemicals would still be permitted. As NPR reported, a 2015 study of coral reefs in Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Israel determined oxybenzone "leaches the coral of its nutrients and bleaches it white. It can also disrupt the development of fish and other wildlife." Even a small drop is enough to damage delicate corals. At the time, researchers estimated about 14,000 tons of sunscreen lotions end up in coral reefs around the world each year. Opposition to the ban came from sunscreen manufacturers, including Bayer, the maker of Coppertone. And the state's major doctors group said the ban goes too far. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser wrote: "Bayer said there are limited, active ingredients available within the U.S. with the same proven effectiveness as oxybenzone for sunscreens over SPF 50. The Hawaii Medical Association said it wanted the issue to be studied more deeply because there was a lack of peer-reviewed evidence suggesting sunscreen is a cause of coral bleaching, and overwhelming evidence that not wearing sunscreen increases cancer rates."

Comments

Re:inb4

[AmiMoJo]

Keep reading...

"Bayer said there are limited, active ingredients available within the U.S. with the same proven effectiveness as oxybenzone for sunscreens over SPF 50."

Sounds like a classic example of externalized costs. Cheaper ingredients that pass the cost on to coral reefs.

Re:Good for humans, too.

[thegarbz]

And nobody needs sunscreen over 50SPF

Sorry but that is just horseshit. A large number of people don't need sunscreen beyond SPF50. But there are plenty that do depending on the UV factor of where you are and how long you intend to stay in the sun. SPF30 may be good enough for a large portion of the population but try spend a day fishing in Australia. I applied SPF50 4 times over the course of the day. Got home with a sunburn.

Though I do struggle to explain to europens why they see me in my facebook photo in the sun with a long sleeved shirt on. Never spend a day in the sun without SPF75, a rashie with a UPF of 50+, glasses, and a hat in some parts of the world.

And no, SPF50 implies 50 times the protection time for your skin. In extreme UV environments you can most definitely burn in the hours the sun is up, even if your sunscreen is perfecly applied (it's not, it pretty much begins to fade in effecacy as soon as its applied), and more importantly you don't need to burn to affect your body. Just because you don't go home a tomatoe doesn't mean you didn't just put yourself at increased exposure to skin cancer.