Hawaii's sunscreen ban will attempt to protect struggling coral reefs

Hawaii's sunscreen ban will attempt to protect struggling coral reefs © Annie Spratt

That stuff you use to keep your skin healthy in the sun? Yeah, it's terrible for the health of coral reefs. As if they didn't have enough problems to deal with lately.

Fortunately, Hawaii lawmakers are stepping in to help. The Hawaiian state legislature just passed a bill that would ban the sale of sunscreens containing the chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate. Research has shown these chemicals are toxic to coral (as larvae and once they've grown to adults), and can promote viral infections that cause coral bleaching — even in small doses. And the amount entering the oceans is far from small: according to one 2015 estimate, some 14,000 tons of sunscreen assault the world's coral reefs annually.

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