compozer Posted April 9, 2019 #1 Share Posted April 9, 2019 Jessica Schaefer to Cozumel 4 You 10 hrs PLEASE be a responsible tourist and ambassador to our oceans! Please be aware that we are having a huge push in Cozumel for our visitors to be aware of the reef and conditions of our ocean. Our coral has taken a huge hit over the last few months 😞We are having major bleaching and killing of coral, and many companies are thus enforcing reef safe sun screen regulations. PLEASE if you enter the ocean, be sure that IF you wear SPF, that you are wearing reef safe sunscreen! So grab some on Amazon before you head down to the Caribbean. Also, sun protective clothing and hats are a great idea... rash guards are great! Thank you for doing your part to help protect our beautiful ocean and marine life! PLEASE share with any and everyone who you know will be visiting Cozumel and the Riviera Maya! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohninDC Posted April 9, 2019 #2 Share Posted April 9, 2019 Thanks! Been using safe sunscreen for my snorkel trips for the past couple of years. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 9, 2019 Author #3 Share Posted April 9, 2019 That is great John. My dive shop has been selling a reef safe lotion for years. This winter we found out that there is still one chemical in it so we stopped selling it and have ordered a better brand. Not sure if everyone knows what coral bleaching is, it is the tan on the coral. It spreads very fast and is killing coral. I am seeing it all over the reefs when I am diving. Wear a rash guard top or something to cover your back when snorkeling. Or find a reef safe lotion. I was just diving for a week and wore a hat and long sleeve top while in the sun. No sunburn and I was in the sun on a boat all day for 5 days. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Itchy&Scratchy Posted April 10, 2019 #4 Share Posted April 10, 2019 Stop wearing sunscreen and get skin cancer! Yay, cancer for everyone! may want to rephrase your title. Compozer, you may not have burned, but I have a red haired milky white child who needs sunblock under his rashguard in order not to burn. And yes, we wear huge hats. Still have to slather SPF lotion on our faces and all the other body parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tja273 Posted April 10, 2019 #5 Share Posted April 10, 2019 10 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said: Stop wearing sunscreen and get skin cancer! Yay, cancer for everyone! may want to rephrase your title. Compozer, you may not have burned, but I have a red haired milky white child who needs sunblock under his rashguard in order not to burn. And yes, we wear huge hats. Still have to slather SPF lotion on our faces and all the other body parts. Correct. Everyone (yes, even those that "don't ever burn") should wear REEF SAFE sunscreen. Prevent damage to our reefs AND skin cancer. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 12, 2019 Author #6 Share Posted April 12, 2019 On 4/10/2019 at 8:07 AM, Itchy&Scratchy said: Stop wearing sunscreen and get skin cancer! Yay, cancer for everyone! may want to rephrase your title. Compozer, you may not have burned, but I have a red haired milky white child who needs sunblock under his rashguard in order not to burn. And yes, we wear huge hats. Still have to slather SPF lotion on our faces and all the other body parts. Article does not say to stop wearing sunscreen. It says use reef safe sunscreen. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiccups Posted April 12, 2019 #7 Share Posted April 12, 2019 3 hours ago, compozer said: Article does not say to stop wearing sunscreen. It says use reef safe sunscreen. Yes, but that's not what YOU said in your title. I've had skin cancer, so going without is not an option, which is what your title suggests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 12, 2019 Author #8 Share Posted April 12, 2019 OMG - You are touchy. People usually read the post before they reply. I also have cancer but I don't jump on everyone that says don' t do this or that or stop eating this. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judyrem Posted April 13, 2019 #9 Share Posted April 13, 2019 I use Alba organics when snorkeling or swimming. I also wear a rashguard when snorkeling and the rashguard also keeps your skin safe from most sharp objects. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare vacationlover_mn Posted April 13, 2019 #10 Share Posted April 13, 2019 Thanks for posting this informative article! I had no idea about this issue 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 13, 2019 Author #11 Share Posted April 13, 2019 You are welcome. I am so pleased that many islands are trying to do something and dive shops that offer snorkeling and diving state it on their contracts. I am a diver and have seen so much coral damage. A number of us are going to Cozumel this summer to take a coral restoration class. I also see all kinds of trash, especially plastics. My dive group does many clean up dives around our area, it is a shame what people toss out. Or it gets away from them and they make no effort to go pick it up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare vacationlover_mn Posted April 13, 2019 #12 Share Posted April 13, 2019 6 hours ago, compozer said: You are welcome. I am so pleased that many islands are trying to do something and dive shops that offer snorkeling and diving state it on their contracts. I am a diver and have seen so much coral damage. A number of us are going to Cozumel this summer to take a coral restoration class. I also see all kinds of trash, especially plastics. My dive group does many clean up dives around our area, it is a shame what people toss out. Or it gets away from them and they make no effort to go pick it up. Interesting! I didn’t know there was a way to restore coral... good to hear that there is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare vacationlover_mn Posted April 13, 2019 #13 Share Posted April 13, 2019 6 hours ago, compozer said: I also see all kinds of trash, especially plastics. My dive group does many clean up dives around our area, it is a shame what people toss out. Or it gets away from them and they make no effort to go pick it up. In MN, a frustrating problem we have is that people throw all kinds of trash on the ice, when they ice fish... kind of like they have no idea that all of that garbage will fall into the lake when the ice melts 😞 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 13, 2019 Author #14 Share Posted April 13, 2019 1 hour ago, vacationlover_mn said: Interesting! I didn’t know there was a way to restore coral... good to hear that there is! Here is a link to the Cozumel program: https://www.ccrrp.org/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compozer Posted April 13, 2019 Author #15 Share Posted April 13, 2019 1 hour ago, vacationlover_mn said: In MN, a frustrating problem we have is that people throw all kinds of trash on the ice, when they ice fish... kind of like they have no idea that all of that garbage will fall into the lake when the ice melts 😞 OMG! I never thought about ice fishing. But I can see that happening. That is terrible. So many people are pigs!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aknguyen Posted April 15, 2019 #16 Share Posted April 15, 2019 For previous trips I would order specialty sunscreen online and it wasn't cheap. For this trip, I found some reef safe sunscreen at Ulta and it qualified for their 20% off coupon. They had 4 or 5 brands so it's a lot easier to find and is more affordable now than it used to be. Hopefully this will translate into more people using it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lbrussel Posted April 21, 2019 #17 Share Posted April 21, 2019 Never dawned on me that sunscreen could damage the coral. Since I burn like a lobster (northern European ancestors) I will be looking for the reef safe sunblock. Is there a particular brand that any one could recommend, so I make sure I've gotten the right one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNBR Posted April 22, 2019 #18 Share Posted April 22, 2019 This is all great, but the mineral sunscreens are not that effective. There is a reason certain chemicals are in the traditional sunscreens. If you really want to be reef safe, wear clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor rating and cover up. If you are sensitive to the sun, you should probably continue using traditional sunblock. I am not interested in getting skin cancer by using ineffective mineral sunscreens. Sorry. But I do often cover up with a rash guard and avoid sun screen. I also don't use sunscreen while diving. I try, but when I'm in the sun, I'm using a high spf traditional sunscreen. Quoting Consumer Reports: "And unfortunately, in the past six years of sunscreen testing, none of the mineral products we’ve tested offer both top-notch UVA and UVB protection and meet their labeled SPF, says Susan Booth, the project leader for our sunscreen testing." 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinmike Posted April 24, 2019 #19 Share Posted April 24, 2019 On 4/22/2019 at 11:29 AM, BNBR said: This is all great, but the mineral sunscreens are not that effective. There is a reason certain chemicals are in the traditional sunscreens. If you really want to be reef safe, wear clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor rating and cover up. If you are sensitive to the sun, you should probably continue using traditional sunblock. I am not interested in getting skin cancer by using ineffective mineral sunscreens. Sorry. But I do often cover up with a rash guard and avoid sun screen. I also don't use sunscreen while diving. I try, but when I'm in the sun, I'm using a high spf traditional sunscreen. Quoting Consumer Reports: "And unfortunately, in the past six years of sunscreen testing, none of the mineral products we’ve tested offer both top-notch UVA and UVB protection and meet their labeled SPF, says Susan Booth, the project leader for our sunscreen testing." Not to be argumentative but if you find yourself unable to wear sunscreen that won’t kill marine creature, maybe you should stay away from the ocean. I’m getting tired of seeing coral die as a result of uncaring humans. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNBR Posted April 24, 2019 #20 Share Posted April 24, 2019 (edited) 4 minutes ago, smokinmike said: Not to be argumentative but if you find yourself unable to wear sunscreen that won’t kill marine creature, maybe you should stay away from the ocean. I’m getting tired of seeing coral die as a result of uncaring humans. The science is WAY too young on this. Just do more reading. Even the mineral sunscreens have chemicals that have been found to possibly be more damaging to corals than traditional. So the people who think they are saving the world may very well be doing the most damage. I'm not convinced coral is all dying because of uncaring humans. I'm a diver. Things look pretty good to me, even the near shore stuff where all the tourists are trashing the ocean with their sunscreen.... Coral bleaching has WAY more to do with water temperatures than sunscreen. But as humans, we love to think we have all the answers to solve everything. Surely everything in nature is man caused. Rain dances when there isn't enough rain... get skin cancer because some coral is bleaching... Edited April 24, 2019 by BNBR 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinmike Posted April 24, 2019 #21 Share Posted April 24, 2019 2 hours ago, BNBR said: The science is WAY too young on this. Just do more reading. Even the mineral sunscreens have chemicals that have been found to possibly be more damaging to corals than traditional. So the people who think they are saving the world may very well be doing the most damage. I'm not convinced coral is all dying because of uncaring humans. I'm a diver. Things look pretty good to me, even the near shore stuff where all the tourists are trashing the ocean with their sunscreen.... Coral bleaching has WAY more to do with water temperatures than sunscreen. But as humans, we love to think we have all the answers to solve everything. Surely everything in nature is man caused. Rain dances when there isn't enough rain... get skin cancer because some coral is bleaching... I think that the scuence is pretty well established that certain chemicals in sunscreens are deadly to corals - even in minute doses. While I agree with you that temperature rise poses a potentially more harmful long- term threat to corals, why not do the FEW things that we as individuals CAN do to help the ocean environment? That would involve personal choices regarding sunscreen use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNBR Posted April 24, 2019 #22 Share Posted April 24, 2019 1 minute ago, smokinmike said: I think that the scuence is pretty well established that certain chemicals in sunscreens are deadly to corals - even in minute doses. While I agree with you that temperature rise poses a potentially more harmful long- term threat to corals, why not do the FEW things that we as individuals CAN do to help the ocean environment? That would involve personal choices regarding sunscreen use. Because skin cancer is serious. I'm all for environmentally friendly options. But misleading people in to thinking they are getting similar protection is dangerous. There is a reason those chemicals are in sunscreen. And the mineral versions are not equivalent. It's not like you just simply buy reef safe and voila! That information could be deadly, literally. Not to mention the reef safe stuff contains chemicals that kill coral, so there is that... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokinmike Posted April 24, 2019 #23 Share Posted April 24, 2019 2 hours ago, BNBR said: Because skin cancer is serious. I'm all for environmentally friendly options. But misleading people in to thinking they are getting similar protection is dangerous. There is a reason those chemicals are in sunscreen. And the mineral versions are not equivalent. It's not like you just simply buy reef safe and voila! That information could be deadly, literally. Not to mention the reef safe stuff contains chemicals that kill coral, so there is that... I think we'll have to agree to disagree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNBR Posted April 24, 2019 #24 Share Posted April 24, 2019 17 minutes ago, smokinmike said: I think we'll have to agree to disagree. Disagree with what? I quoted the consumer reports testing statement that makes it clear mineral sunscreens do not provide the protection they claim. Do you disagree with the people who are actually doing the tests? Can you provide a source? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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