Help Make a Difference in our Natural Resources and Habitats.
About Us
Haereticus Environmental Laboratory (HEL) is a non-profit scientific organization dedicated to increasing the scientific, social and economic knowledge of natural environmental habitats in order to better conserve and restore threatened environmental habitats and resources.
What Does Haereticus Mean?
The original definition of the word “haereticus” is “able to choose.” This is not a simple concept. It implies or assumes that a person is able “to know” facts and the nature of a topic. In the context of environmental and ecological health and conservation, a person must know “the facts” of what is safe and what is harmful to your own person and the environment before you are “able to choose” for the best.
Is Your Sunscreen Killing Coral Reefs?
HEL has its roots in analyzing and protecting one of our most beautiful natural resources - our coral reefs. After much research, we found that a common ingredient in sunscreens, called Oxybenzone, is a threat to coral reefs and marine life.
Many beaches, including all in Hawaii have outlawed any sunscreen with Oxybenzone as an ingredient.
Read more about this groundbreaking research and see which sunscreens you should be buying to help protect the world’s reefs and marine life.
Key Scientific Discoveries
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Chemical in Sunscreens Transform into Carcinogen
A popular sunscreen and anti-aging cream ingredient, Octocrylene, degrades into a toxic chemical that is a known carcinogen and endocrine disruptor harming our coral reefs and our bodies.
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Beach Showers are Source of Sunscreen Pollution for Coral Reefs
In 2019, sands in nearby runoff streams from public beach showers were sampled to three Hawaii Islands and were found to be contaminated with a wide array of petrochemical-based UV-filters found in sunscreens.
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Oxybenzone Sunscreen Threatens Hawaii's Hanauma Bay's Coral Reefs
Hanauma Bay, a 101-acre coral reef system and popular snorkeling destination in Hawaii, has been negatively impacted by the use of every-day sunscreen products.