A Vancouver Island community that draws big crowds as a summer destination is looking to ban certain t types of sunscreen.
Lake Cowichan does big business in the summer months, with people coming to camp, cool off in the lake that bears its name or float down the Cowichan River.
But the municipal council is raising concerns about an ingredient in some chemical sunscreens that could be harmful to the river’s ecosystem.
“We have the second largest freshwater lake on Vancouver Island and also the Cowichan River which is one of 44 heritage rivers in Canada which is very significant culturally, economically and physically to the local First Nations who live within the area and to the town of Lake Cowichan as well,” said Lake Cowichan Mayor Tim McGonigle.
“We see an influx of probably four times the population of Lake Cowichan in the summer months.”
The municipality is now considering a bylaw that would ban the use of sunscreen containing the compound Oxybenzone, which can potentially contaminate the aquatic environment and bioaccumulate in living organisms.
McGonigle said municipal staff have been instructed to look into whether the town could legally ban the sale of non-complying sunscreens.
“We know that we can’t control what comes into the community,” he said. “But we can control possibly what is sold within the municipal boundaries.”
Some local businesses have already switched over to eco-friendly alternatives, but the community says it will move ahead with the ban if staff conclude its a legal option.