County Bill Bans Non-Mineral Sunscreens
By Catherine Cluett Pactol
The sale, distribution and use of non-mineral sunscreens could soon be prohibited on Molokai, Maui and Lanai as part of Bill 135, which was recently passed unanimously by the Maui County Council.
Introduced by County Councilmember Kelly Takaya King, chair of the Council’s Climate Action, Resilience, and Environment Committee, Bill 135 recognizes that many non-mineral sunscreens have been shown to pose a direct threat to the health of coastal waters, coral reefs and other marine species.
Non-mineral sunscreens include chemical sunscreens such as oxybenzone, octinoxate and octocrylene. Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are known as “mineral sunscreens,” and of the 16 active ingredients currently used as UV filters in sunscreen products, only zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are generally recognized as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration. …














