e-3364 (Environment)

Petition to the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

• 50% of coral has died due to climate change and pollution, and according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), 10% of this is caused by suncreen;
• The Government of Canada has pledged to protect oceans;
• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says that more than half a billion people depend on coral reefs for food, income, and protection;
• Coral reefs are considered the 21st century medicine cabinet by the U.S. NOAA as they have been shown to have medicinal uses including treatment of cancers, heart disease, viruses, and more;
• Oxybenzone, octocrylene, and octinoxate, active ingredients in many suncreens, have been shown to cause detriment to marine ecosystems, according to the NOAA;
• NIH research into oxybenzone, octocrylene, and octinoxate have revealed harmful effects to human endorcrine systems;
• Octocrylene degrades into benzophenone which has been shown to induce breast cancer in mice;
• Oxybenzone and octinoxacte are both present in sunscreens as benzophenones, and are similary listed as possible carcinogens under the State of California's Proposition 65;
• A NIH study showed a possible link between benzophenones and endometriosis; and
• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration only awarded the G.R.A.S.E. (Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective) status to two sunscreen ingredients, zinc oxide and titanium dioxide.