Sunscreens harmful to corals are now banned in Thai marine national parks!

The good news came at the beginning of August 2021: Sunscreens harmful to corals are now banned in Thai marine national parks!
This new legal victory will not fail to delight the defenders of the oceans amongst which The Smiling Seahorse :)
Please note however, that we will no longer tolerate these products on the boat, please check that your cosmetics, and in particular your sunscreen, do not contain any of the ingredients listed below before applying it to your body to enjoy the sundeck.

Fines can be as high as THB 100,000, which is currently about USD 3,000 (EUR 2,610.91).

Healthy soft coral reef Similan Islands

What ingredients are banned by Thailand in sunscreens?

Lotions containing oxybenzone, octinoxate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor or butylparaben are now banned.
Reef-friendly alternatives are already available in Thailand and have long been sold on The Smiling Seahorse.

Oxybenzone

The most "aggressive" ingredient is oxybenzone (also known as benzophenone-3 or BP-3), which disrupts coral reproduction, causes bleaching and damages coral DNA.
Oxybenzone is found in more than 3,500 sunscreen products worldwide and even remains commonly used in FDA-approved sunscreens labeled as "Reef friendly."
So take a good look at the ingredients in your cream.

Octinoxate (Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate)

This ingredient filters UV light and causes premature bleaching of coral reefs.

4-Methylbenzylid Camphor (4MBC)

Another sunscreen ingredient that causes coral bleaching, 4MBC is permitted in Europe and Canada, but not in the U.S., Japan, nor Thailand.

Butylparaben (butyl p-hydroxybenzoate)

A preservative ingredient that causes coral bleaching.

Zinc oxide

Yes, zinc occurs naturally in the environment and in seawater, however, zinc-based sunscreens that are advertised as "clear" can be coral-damaging. If you see MSDS as a component, know that it is highly toxic to aquatic organisms...

Think about the cream-free alternative!
We don't think about it enough, but using rash guards (also called "anti-UV tee-shirt", "top", "body" or "lycra"), are by far the best way to protect yourself from the sun without cream: cheaper because you only buy it once, a protection of +50SPF, they are light and flexible, and good news, we have a stock on board the Smiling Seahorse.

Using rash guards are by far the best way to protect yourself from the sun without cream

Coral reefs threatened by the use of certain components in our sunscreens

Between 6,000 and 14,000 tons of sunscreen are used each year by swimmers and divers in the oceans. These creams are added to the already heavy pollution that arrives on coastal areas via wastewater discharges and contribute to the disappearance of our coral reefs...
A real ecological disaster: It should be known that more than 50% of our corals have already disappeared since 1950.

Orange cup coral

Coral starting to bleach

Alcyonarian soft coral

Coral bleaching due to ocean warming is one of the many treats to coral reefs

Why are sunscreens so harmful for corals?

Corals need sunlight to live and the simple fact of blocking their access to this vital light causes them irreparable damage, not to mention the additional toxic effects of some of their chemical components...

How to choose your sunscreen?

Global warming, pollution and other human activities pose additional and significant threats to the survival of coral reefs. 
The results of sunscreen studies should also be taken seriously and if you plan to swim, scuba dive near coral reefs, you should use a coral reef friendly or reef safe sunscreen.

How do I know if a sunscreen is coral reef safe?

CAUTION: "Reef Safe Sunscreen" or "Reef Friendly Sunscreen" labels are not regulated and therefore potentially meaningless.
You really need to look at the ingredients listed to make sure they comply with this new Thai law.
If the sunscreen of your choice contains any of the ingredients listed in our article, it's best to choose a different one! 

Congratulations: You've chosen an environmentally conscious operator!

Since its inception in 2012, The Smiling Seahorse has been committed to ocean preservation and reef conservation.

• Reef-friendly sunscreens have been available on board for a long time, as well as "rashguards" that protect you from the sun without the need for any chemicals.
• We have also selected eco-friendly soap/ shampoo and hair conditioners for you to use in our ocean view showers (produced for luxury eco resorts in the Maldives).
• We use as much as possible organic detergents for the maintenance of the boat and the diving equipment (we rinse your wetsuits in bio detergent for example).
• Aluminum bottles are provided to limit the use of plastic bottles onboard and for many years after ....

What sunscreen do we recommend?

Locally produced, tested and approved by all our team, ReReef can be used by the whole family to get good reef friendly sun protection and can be bought online or onboard: https://rereef.co/product/40g-reef-safe-sunscreen-spf50/.

Reef friendly sun cream

Using a rash guard is by far the best way to protect yourself from the sun without cream: it's less expensive because you only buy it once, it protects well (+50SPF) and the Smiling Seahorse stock on board.

To learn more about our commitment and to know the reference sites for the conservation of the oceans, please visit our page "Conservation of the marine environment".