Hawaii to ban certain sunscreens harmful to coral reefs 하와이에서 선크림 없이 수영해야 할수도 있다

Hawaii's tourism industry sees over eight million visitors each year 

- adverse effects from sunscreen chemicals can add up

Hawaii has become the first US state to pass a bill banning the sale of any sunscreens that have chemicals known to harm coral reefs.
The bill bars the sale of sunscreens containing chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate, which some scientists say contribute to coral bleaching.
The chemicals are used in over 3,500 of the most popular sunscreen products.
The bill, which would take effect in 2021, now awaits the signature of Democratic Governor David Ige.

Democratic Senator Mike Gabbard introduced the bill, which proposes to end the sale of any non-prescription sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, statewide.
Mr Gabbard told the Honolulu Star Advertiser that if the governor signs the bill, it would become "a first-in-the-world law".
"Hawaii is definitely on the cutting edge by banning these dangerous chemicals in sunscreens," Mr Gabbard said.
"This will make a huge difference in protecting our coral reefs, marine life, and human health."

The bill states that the chemicals kill developing coral, increase coral bleaching and cause "genetic damage to coral and other marine organisms".

Craig Downs, one of the co-authors of the main study showing the adverse effects of oxybenzone and octinoxate on reefs, told the Washington Post in 2015 that "any small effort to reduce oxybenzone pollution could mean that a coral reef survives a long, hot summer, or that a degraded area recovers".

The scholarly journal Nature noted that other reef scientists were unsure that banning sunscreens would have a big impact.

"Banning sunscreen will not solve other problems: for example, temperature anomalies, overfishing, coral predators and the big issue of coastal runoffs that pollute and destroy reefs," Jorg Wiedenmann, head of the Coral Reef Laboratory at the University of Southampton in the UK told Nature.

"But if you have places with a high load of tourists going in, it is not unreasonable to stay cautious and say, 'Yes, there may be additive effects.'"

Hawaii's waters see more than eight million tourists each year, and the visitor numbers have been increasing.

Mr Downs' study, published in the Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology journal, found that an estimated 12,000 metric tonnes of sunscreen end up washing into coral reefs.

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs, a public agency advocating for Native Hawaiians, has supported the bill, along with a number of environmental nonprofits.

Only four Republican representatives opposed the bill in the House, but several local associations and companies have also spoken out against it.

The Star Advertiser reported that Bayer, the company that manufactures Coppertone sunscreen, said there are no similar ingredients available in the US with the same effectiveness as oxybenzone.

The Hawaii Medical Association told the newspaper that it disagreed with the bill due to a lack of peer-reviewed evidence suggesting that sunscreen caused coral bleaching, while plenty of evidence shows that sunscreen protects from skin cancer.

 · Can we restore the world’s coral reefs?

 · Coral reefs head for 'knock-out punch'

 · Coral reefs 'entangled with plastic'

The governor has not indicated whether he will sign the bill.
"The world was watching. We delivered," wrote Senator Will Espero on Twitter, when the senate passed the bill.

미국 하와이주가 선크림 판매 금지 법안을 통과시켰다. 주지사가 서명만 하면 2021년부터 발효된다.
BBC에 따르면 하와이주 의회는 지난 1일 옥시벤존과 옥티노세이트가 들어 있는 선크림의 판매와 유통을 금지하는 법안을 통과시켰다. 

이 물질들은 3500개가 넘는 대부분의 선크림에 사용되고 있다. 법안이 시행되면 세계 최초다.
하와이주 의회가 이 법안을 통과시킨 이유는 산호초를 보호하기 위해서다. 

법안에 따르면 바다에 녹아든 이 성분들은 자라는 산호를 죽이고, 산호 백화현상을 가속화시킨다. 산호와 다른 해양 생물들에게 유전적 악영향도 끼친다.

2015년 해당 성분들의 부작용을 연구해 발표했던 크레이그 다운스 하이레티쿠스 환경연구소 이사는 당시 워싱턴포스트와 한 인터뷰에서 ”옥시벤존 오염을 줄이려는 어떤 노력도 산호초 수명을 늘리는 데 도움이 된다”고 말했다.

큰 효과가 없을 거라는 반론도 있다. 조르그 위든멘(Jorg Wiedenmann) 영국 사우샘프턴 대학 산호초 연구소 소장은 네이처에 ”이상 기후, 남획, 산호초 포식자, 해안침식 등도 산호초를 파괴한다. 선크림 판매 금지 조치만으로는 별 효과가 없다”고 말했다.

선크림 생산업체들은 법안에 반대하고 있다. 해당 화학물질이 미국 식품의약처(FDA)의 승인을 받았고 피부암을 예방하는 데 필수적이라는 이유에서다

📝 Story & Image Source : BBC.com
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43993407