WaPo: Sunscreen Protects Skin, but Does It Burn the Planet?

How green is sunscreen? I just spent the weekend frolicking on the beach, slathered in sunscreen. By protecting myself from the elements, am I doing any harm to the elements? What effect does my Coppertone have on the planet?

Washington Post, Nina Shen Rastogi
Published May 27, 2009

Most of us are aware by now that our medicines, soaps and cosmetics wind up in the environment, where they have the potential to wreak havoc on plants and wildlife. Although sunscreen hasn't generated as much concern as, say, birth control drugs, scientists have begun to look more closely at the issue in the past few years. However, there's still a lot we don't know. One chemical analyzed in the Swiss studies was 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, or 4-MBC. It has been the focus of much international attention because of its potential as an endocrine disrupter: In studies of rats, it has been shown to affect birth weight and survival rates. 4-MBC isn't approved as an active ingredient in the United States; however, the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit advocacy organization, has found the chemical in three sunscreens, listed as an "inactive" ingredient (and also in a handful of men's deodorants). To read more click here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/27/AR200905...