Micronesian island Palau has banned sunscreen for its potentially devastating damage to coral reefs and marine life.
Specifically, any sunscreen that contains the chemicals oxybenzone, octocrylene and parabens, which reports say collect on coral reefs in amounts of up to 14,000 tonnes each year.
The ingredient oxybenzone leaches nutrients out of the coral, bleaching it white.
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It is believed around a fifth of all the world's coral has died in the past three years.
A spokesperson for Palau President Thomas Remengesau Jr said they looked at many scientific studies before deciding on the ban.
He said Palau is a popular site for tourists to swim and dock their boats, and "on any given day that equates to gallons of sunscreen going into the ocean".
"We're just looking at what we can do to prevent pollution getting into the environment," he told Agence France-Presse.
A report by the World Resource Institute released in 2011 said reefs all over the world are at risk because of pollution and damage from unregulated and unsafe fishing practices.
The law banning "reef-toxic" sunscreens will come into place from January 1, 2020. Anyone caught importing or selling banned sunscreen faces fines, and it will be confiscated at customs if brought in by tourists.
There are brands of sunscreen available that do not contain reef-toxic ingredients.
In early July, Hawaii passed a bill banning sunscreens containing harmful chemicals, which comes into action in 2021.
Newshub.
