Bill Text: HI SR100 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Requesting The Hawaii Tourism Authority To Establish A Campaign To Educate Visitors To The State About The Harmful Effects Of Oxybenzone Sunscreen On Coral Reefs And To Encourage Visitors To The State To Refrain From Using Oxybenzone Sunscreens.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-03-28 - Report adopted, referred to WAM. [SR100 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2018-SR100-Introduced.html

THE SENATE

S.R. NO.

100

TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

SENATE RESOLUTION

 

 

REquesting the Hawaii Tourism Authority to establish a campaign to educate visitors to the state about the harmful effects of oxybenzone sunscreen on coral reefs and to encourage visitors to the state to refrain from using oxybenzone sunscreens.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, the decline of coral reefs poses a significant ecological threat worldwide; and

 

     WHEREAS, while scientists around the world agree that the primary causes of coral decline are related to global warming, agricultural runoff, sewage, and overfishing, recent studies have shown that that oxybenzone, a common sunscreen ingredient, also has detrimental effects on coral reefs; and

 

     WHEREAS, coral larvae deformity, bleaching, and DNA damage that weaken coral systems' adaptability to climate change have all been attributed to oxybenzone exposure; and

 

     WHEREAS, the harmful effects of oxybenzone are particularly acute in Hawaiian ocean waters where coral bleaching is occurring at a historic rate never before noted in recorded history; and

 

     WHEREAS, there are reasonable alternatives to oxybenzone-based sunscreens, such as zinc oxide and titanium oxide, that allow beach-users to enjoy the outdoors without compromising sun protection; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, that the Hawaii Tourism Authority is requested to establish a campaign to educate visitors to the State about the harmful effects of oxybenzone sunscreen on coral reefs and to encourage visitors to the State to refrain from using oxybenzone sunscreens; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Tourism Authority is requested to submit a report to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2019, on the efforts taken to educate visitors to the State about the harmful effects of oxybenzone sunscreen on coral reefs and to encourage visitors to the State to refrain from using oxybenzone sunscreens; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

Report Title: 

Sunscreen; Oxybenzone; Hawaii Tourism Authority

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