Sunscreens can be toxic to coral reefs, particularly ones containing the molecule oxybenzone, which is a very popular additive. It is not the only substance in sunscreens that make coral polyps sick, though.
Those interested in the science might be interested in this article
http://link.springer.com/article/10....244-015-0227-7
DAN has issued a bulletin about it
http://www.alertdiver.com/Sunscreen-Pollution
As has NOAA
http://cdhc.noaa.gov/_docs/Site%20Bu...reen_final.pdf
I was surprised to find out just how much sunscreen gets emitted by swimmers in the water every year.
So what can a pale, sunburnable mer do to help?
Well, the alerts do make suggestions for "less unfriendly" sunscreens, but you may find yourself scrutinizing some pretty strange looking ingredient lists trying to figure out what could be harmful. Also, the impact of releasing large amounts of metal such as zinc & titanium into reef waters isn't exactly known yet either. It's clear, though, that there are some real baddies like oxybenzone that you shouldn't even buy.
There is the alternative of building up resistance to sun exposure rather than relying on sunscreens.
In particular, one can avoid buying sunscreens with massive amounts of active ingredients making SPF claims of 30, 50 and even 100.
A chemist I know worked for a cosmetics company early in his career, and he said any claims of Sun Protection Factor higher than 8 are BS. You might find this article interesting
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/ar...screen/261180/
Sunscreen-free is possible other ways, though. Wearing a wetsuit, even a very thin one, removes the need to wear sunscreen. One way to go when diving in warm water without a wetsuit is to wear those sun- and jellyfish-protective lycra suits instead of wearing a bathing suit and slathering yourself with sunscreen all over.
LOL- just had to add a photo of my all-time favourite protective suit. (Anybody know where you can buy these?)
So maybe other mers can suggest ideas for reducing sunscreen pollution?
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