Representatives from The Kohala Center’s Kahalu‘u Bay Education Center will be canvassing Kahalu‘u Bay and Beach Park on Saturday, June 1, 2019, to educate visitors about mineral-based sunscreens that minimize damage to coral and marine ecosystems while providing safe and effective sun protection.
Canvassing will begin at 9 a.m. and will end when samples run out.
Patrons with sunscreens containing oxybenzone and other active ingredients known or suspected to adversely affect coral health will have the opportunity to exchange their products for full-size samples of mineral-based sunscreens donated by Goddess Garden. The sunscreen swap represents a more proactive step in the center’s ongoing efforts to empower residents and visitors to keep Hawai‘i’s marine ecosystems healthy.
Water samples taken in Kahalu‘u Bay in April 2018 indicated extremely high concentrations of oxybenzone, an active ingredient commonly found in chemical-based sunscreens.
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Last year Hawai‘i Gov. David Ige signed into law a bill that will prohibit the sale, offer of sale and distribution of sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate effective Jan. 1, 2021.
The Kahalu‘u Bay Education Center at Kahalu‘u Beach Park is located at 78-6710 Ali‘i Drive in Kailua-Kona.
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