S.C.R. 173 Summary

• Urges the Department of Land and Natural Resources to install mineral-based sunscreen dispensers at all state beaches to reduce chemical pollution harming Hawaii's coral reef ecosystems

• Requests funding for dispensers come from commercial marine license fees and fines collected from violations of permits to take aquatic life for aquarium purposes

• References Act 104 (2018), which banned sunscreen containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, and notes ongoing efforts to ban additional harmful chemicals like avobenzone and octocrylene

• Cites the National Ocean Service findings that chemical sunscreens impair plant growth, deform animals, and contribute to coral bleaching

• Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to submit a progress report to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the 2023 Regular Session