Coral reefs are threatened by chemicals found in common beach essentials.
Sometimes it’s a bit of a stretch to connect broad environmental issues to our little hometown of Athens, Ohio, but at one point or another, most of us will vacation at a beach. With the holiday season closing in, you might already be making vacation plans.
When you get to your sunny destination, stay conscious of something that a lot of vacationers don’t even recognize as a problem — sunscreen.
In particular, if you’re traveling anywhere near a coral reef, the chemicals in sun protectant pose a serious risk to aquatic habitats.
National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science researchers have discovered that a chemical used in sunscreen since the 1960s to protect against ultraviolet light might be doing more harm than good.
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According to stream2sea.com, between 6,000 and 14,000 tons of sunscreen washes off in the ocean every year. The good news is that some of these products are biodegradable and won’t become a big issue. But many products contain oxybenzone, which disrupts coral reproduction, causes coral bleaching and damages coral DNA.
The chemical is found in more than 3,500 sunscreen products worldwide.
Other ingredients to be on the lookout for are butylparaben, octinoxate and 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, which all cause coral bleaching.
The ingredients activate viruses in the algae called zooxanthellae, which provide food for the coral reefs though a photosynthetic process, and without them, the colors slowly drain away, leaving behind purely white coral reefs. This process can take as little as four days.
Even lower levels of sunscreen, or diluted sunscreen, can activate the virus, so the best solution is replacing the ingredients entirely.
And the same chemicals used in these sunscreens are other used in other soaps, cosmetics and body fragrances. Since they’re not removed from wastewater, the discharge is released right into the Caribbean Sea, threatening near-shore reefs.
The terms are a bit of a mouthful, but there are other ways to look for safe products.
The ‘Reel safe’ claims on a lot of brands aren’t necessarily a good indicator, though. There are no actual ‘Reel safe’ tests or certifications, and since they’re essentially unregulated, they’re essentially meaningless.
Apart from avoiding the ingredients listed above, water resistant, biodegradable sunscreens like Badger Balm products are the safest bet to be coral reef-friendly. There is no evidence that zinc oxide, the active ingredient in these products, can harm reefs.
Up to 10 percent of coral reefs may be affected by chemicals in sunscreen. The percentage may seem small, but considering the already rapid disappearance of reefs due to other manmade problems, eliminating harmful sunscreens is one of the easiest ways to go about protecting reefs.
Coastal pollution, overfishing and sedimentation all contribute to the disappearance of coral reefs. It’s not a question of banning sunscreen but of thinking of better ways to keep both ourselves and our ocean safe and protected.
Kat Tenbarge is a freshman majoring in journalism and environmental studies. What environmental issues do you think demand attention? Email her at kt154714@ohio.edu or tweet her @katsappho.
