Protect your skin while protecting the reef.
When packing your beach bag for a day at the coast, one of the essentials has got to be sunscreen. There’s even a song by Baz Luhrmann citing the benefits of wearing sunscreen and that everybody’s free to use it. But the popularity of this skin care routine has a detrimental effect on our oceans coral and marine life. An estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen seeps into the ocean every year.
What makes sunscreen so bad?
Sunscreen products contain numerous ingredients which are damaging to marine life. So damaging, in fact, that some destinations including Palau, Hawaii, US Virgin Islands, Key West and Bonaire are all in the process of banning toxic sunscreens. Key ingredients to avoid are Oxybenzone and Octinoxate. These can affect corals’ reproductive cycle, damage DNA, and worsen the effects of coral bleaching. While the impact on coral reefs has attracted the most attention, other marine life may be affected. This includes small crustaceans, molluscs, fish and other organisms such as sea urchins, which are ecosystem engineers and essential for the creation of marine habitats.
Everybody’s free to choose an alternative.
Since the discovery of the harmful effects on coral, manufacturers are making changes. The safest sunscreen is biodegradable and made from minerals, instead of chemicals. We recommend using brands with non-nano Titanium Dioxide or Zinc Oxide as the active ingredient. “Non-nano” sunscreen is made up of particles larger than 100 nanometers in diameter and is safer for marine life than “nano” sunscreen, containing particles smaller than 100 nanometers.
“Reef-safe” sunscreen is not yet regulated and has no agreed specifications. So when you next search the shelves, check the labels or consider these options:
- Avoid aerosols. Spray on sunscreens create a chemical cloud that settles on the sand. When the tide comes in, these chemicals are washed into the ocean.
- Avoid sunscreens with harmful chemicals such as Oxybenzone and Octinoxate.
- Opt for mineral sunscreens that use ingredients such as zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. But remember that not all mineral sunscreens are reef-safe. Ingredients must be “non-nano”, as this makes it less likely to be absorbed by marine life.
Here’s our top choices
To make things a little easier, we’ve put our top 5 brands together (in no particular order) with pro’s, con’s and where to find them.
Re-Wild Skin Care
Lekker: A local Durban brand, handcrafted and 100% natural. This non-nano zinc is luxuriously creamy and smells good enough to eat… and you probably could if you tried!
Bummer: Only available in +- SPF 20, perfect for chilling on the beach where you can reapply.
Green Honu
Lekker: Available in SPF 20 and SPF 50 options with a portion of the sales going to Breathe Ocean Conservation.
Bummer: We’re haven’t found one yet!
Nivea
Lekker: One of the few retail brands that are Ocean Friendly and found in all major stores, making it easy to access.
Bummer: Being made in Spain, this is not a local brand. That means high carbon emissions with imports.
Back 2 Nature
Lekker: A Cape Town brand that has adopted the ethos of being a conscious consumer, making it affordable and accessible to everyone. Offering both zinc and mineral sunscreen. They also support The Litterboom Project with 7% of all online sales going to the river clean up initiative.
Bummer: The mineral sunscreen was sold out when we tried to buy it! (Not really a bummer)
Surf Yogi
Lekker: Another natural alternative surfscreen zinc that can be found in most surf shops.
Bummer: Although the thick, clay-like texture means it sticks to your skin for hours in the water, we don’t love what it does to our pores. Made in Bali means this one has a heavy carbon footprint too.
Spread the word.
Drive consumer demand by advocating for more reef-safe sunscreen options and raising awareness. Educate others about the consequences of regular sunscreens and let them know how they can keep themselves and the reef safe.
We all have an obligation to protect the world’s incredible and invaluable coral reefs and change starts with you.
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