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Key West Moves To Ban Sunscreens That Could Damage Reefs (miamiherald.com)
Yesterday, the Key West City Commission unanimously voted to ban the sale of sunscreens that contain two ingredients -- oxybenzone and octinoxate -- that a growing body of scientific evidence says harm coral reefs. The measure must now be reviewed again by the commission before it becomes law. The second vote is scheduled for February 5th. Miami Herald reports: Environmental researchers have published studies showing how these two ingredients, which accumulate in the water from bathers or from wastewater discharges, can damage coral reefs through bleaching and harming the corals' DNA. In some instances, the corals can die. A Feburary 2016 study in the Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology examining the impact of oxybenzone in corals in Hawaii and the U.S. Virgin Islands concluded that the sunscreen ingredient "poses a hazard to coral reef conservation and threatens the resiliency of coral reefs to climate change.''
Last year, Hawaii banned the sale or distribution of any sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, a measure that will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2021. It was the first state in the nation to implement such a ban. In Florida, the website for the South Florida Reef Ambassador Initiative, which falls under the state's Department of Environmental Protection, tells divers to "Avoid sunscreens with Oxybenzone and Avobenzone. The benzones are compounds that are lethal to coral reproduction in very small amounts." Experts who have studied the issue say sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, which are minerals, also block ultraviolet rays. They create a barrier on the skin that deflect the sun's rays .
Last year, Hawaii banned the sale or distribution of any sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, a measure that will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2021. It was the first state in the nation to implement such a ban. In Florida, the website for the South Florida Reef Ambassador Initiative, which falls under the state's Department of Environmental Protection, tells divers to "Avoid sunscreens with Oxybenzone and Avobenzone. The benzones are compounds that are lethal to coral reproduction in very small amounts." Experts who have studied the issue say sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, which are minerals, also block ultraviolet rays. They create a barrier on the skin that deflect the sun's rays .
I dont live in an overly sunny area of the world so I dont know anything about sunscreen, so I did a quick search...
Consumer Reports 2018, top 5 sunscreens:
(A) La Roche-Posay Anthelios 60 Melt-In Sunscreen Milk.
(B) Coppertone Sport SPF 50 Lotion Sunscreen.
(C) Aveeno Protect + Hydrate Lotion SPF 30.
(D) Banana Boat SunComfort Clear UltraMist Spray SPF 50+ Sunscreen.
(E) Coppertone Kids Sunscreen Stick SPF 55.
The offending ingredients named in the summary are Oxybenzone and Octinoxate
(A) contains Oxybenzone 3.86%
(B) neither listed
(C) contains Oxybenzone 5%
(D) contains Oxybenzone 3%
(E) contains Oxybenzone 6%
All of them (including B) listed an active ingredient with a similar sounding name to Octinoxate called Octisalate.
Given that apparently the best sunscreens use this stuff, it would be no surprise that people would just go ahead and ignore the law.
"His name was James Damore."
The problem with the world today is "this is how we have always done it" or "things were better when I was growing up."
They are just lazy excuses for people to not have to put any effort into anything. They would rather sit and rot than do something positive. They would rather call themselves Christians and pretend to live like they preach but being compassionate is way too hard when you need to have compassion for people who are different than you are.
If there isn't a sunscreen as good as the ones with these ingredients right now there will be soon. How do I know? Because that's how companies work. They make money off of product X until places ban product X because there are bad things in it. Then they quickly find something new and start selling product Y as even better than X. Until in 30 years we find out product Y was more toxic than what it replaced. They don't care about people protecting themselves from the sun or keeping people from getting skin cancer. Anyone who believes that is hopped up on goofballs. Companies exist for the sole purpose of making money. It doesn't matter what they make or sell they are doing it for profit and not for the good of the world or their employees and consumers.
The world changes, things that used to be socially acceptable no longer are. I'm in Arkansas and have lived in the south my entire life. Nearly everyone in the southern US is fighting tooth and nail to stop social change. I am pretty sure there are folks like this all over the country and world. The reasonable and rational people need to tell them to shut up and if we have to we can just shame them into crawling back under their rock and keeping their mouths shut until they eventually die off.
Translation: ban all the other (potentially) harmful things before you ban my $favorite_sunscreen.
Go put on a hat.