Thailand ban on sunscreens with chemicals harmful to corals begins Wednesday

[misskit]

Thailand’s ban on the use of sunscreen, containing any of four chemicals deemed to be harmful to coral reefs in the country’s national parks, came into effect today (Wednesday), according to an announcement by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation published on the Royal Gazette’s website yesterday.


The banned chemicals are Oxybenzone, Octinoxate, 4MBC and Butylparaben. Violators can be fined up to 100,000 baht.


Studies have shown that these chemicals, found in as many as 3,500 brands of sunscreen, can damage the corals’ reproduction system and lead to coral bleaching.


Meanwhile, National Parks of Thailand posted, on its official Facebook page today, citing studies showing that up to 14,000 tonnes of harmful chemicals are damaging corals each year.


Tourists are urged to use sunscreens which are coral friendly and which do not contain these chemicals, using mineral-based products instead, such as zinc oxide. Water-resistant sunscreen is also recommended and wearing hats and long-sleeved swimwear will reduce the need to use excessive amounts of sunscreen.


Before the pandemic, it was reported that much of the country’s coral had been severely damaged or died, due to excessive tourism, prompting the authorities to seek to limit the harm and rehabilitate the reefs. The world-famous Maya Bay, a filming location for the Hollywood movie “The Beach”, has been closed since mid-2018.


Recent reports claim that the lack of tourists since last year has led to natural regeneration, with more rare species being spotted.



Thailand's ban on sunscreens with chemicals harmful to corals begins Wednesday | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

[harrybarracuda]

The banned chemicals are Oxybenzone, Octinoxate, 4MBC and Butylparaben. Violators can be fined up to 100,000 baht.

I'm sure the BiB are already looking at ways to monetise this...

[cyrille]

Blimey - another reason to stride purposefully past that parkie's hut on Koh Samet.

[Clark77]

If we ever get back to normal, someone's going to make a mint selling "approved" sunscreens on the pier.

[Saint Willy]

So many cynics on this thread…

[harrybarracuda]

So many cynics on this thread…

Just wait for the police roadblocks.

"Forget the license, hmmm Coppertone, big pomplem".

[aging one]

They must be going after Thai's. They wear sunscreen on a rainy day, and I have never seen a Thai go to the sun without a couple of different kinds of sunscreen. Check those bags now..