Do you love being out and about exploring our oceans? Us too! Whether you’re swimming, snorkelling or diving, today I’m sharing some top tips that you can use to help protect our precious ocean ecosystems, and why they’re important. 

We all know the importance of reducing our single-use plastic consumption after plastic had its viral moment a few years ago, and if you haven’t already, get yourself a reusable water bottle and coffee cup ASAP! Once you’ve done that, read on to level up your knowledge on how else you can keep our marine life safe…

Respect Marine Life

Sounds obvious I know, but we’ve all seen those videos of people harassing wildlife in one way or another - I think it goes without saying (writing), but that is not behaviour that we at PWYL condone. Keep your distance, don’t chase and don’t touch.

Touching marine life can not only be dangerous for yourself, but dangerous for them too. For example, although corals don’t look like it, they are fragile animals and touching them can be very harmful. You are likely to expose them to foreign bacteria or oils on your fingers and you could break the coral’s outer layer, some of which can then take years to rebuild (not to mention, your skin will not thank you if you touch a fire coral!).

Swimming or chasing after more mobile marine life can be a very distressing experience for many species. Although we don’t know the exact extent or impact of stress on every species, we do know that it can lead to erratic or abnormal behaviours. Using energy reserves to evade you can have knock-on effects, including reduced foraging or hunting success which can subsequently cause reduced reproductive success. In the case of animals who breathe air (i.e. sea turtles), they can also feel trapped underwater and, in extreme circumstances, could drown.

So, be careful where you stand, keep your hands to yourself, and let curious animals come to you for the most rewarding and unique wildlife encounters.

Sun Safety - Safe for you AND safe for the reef 

We all know that we need to wear sunscreen to protect our skin from harmful UV rays, but with so many options on the market now, it can be hard to know where to start with choosing one. Your sunscreen can run off your skin and into our waterways and oceans whether you’re in the ocean or just having a shower, so we need to be mindful of how our choices impact our aquatic life.

Chemical sunscreens can have a range of damaging impacts on marine life. This includes inducing coral bleaching, damaging coral DNA, reducing growth and photosynthesis rates of marine plant life, and fertility issues or health defects in offspring for a wide array of species - and that’s just scratching the surface! The crux of the issues here are caused by a number of harmful substances that have been identified through the HEL (Haereticus Environmental Laboratories) list, including oxybenzone and octinoxate (two of the main chemical culprits), as well as octocrylene, parabens and a number of others. 

Enter: Mineral Sunscreens. These sunscreens contain either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide which use physical UVA or UVB blockers, and are both safe and effective for your skin, and have been proven to not cause harm to our oceans.

However, it’s important to note that the term ‘reef-friendly’ or ‘reef-safe’ is unregulated, so just because a brand claims it, doesn’t mean that it is! Make sure you check the fine print for those chemicals above, and ensure that the zinc or titanium is ‘non-nano’ or ‘micro-sized’, as the nano-sized stuff can still be harmful in high concentrations.

Other top tips:

• Try to avoid spray or misting sunscreens as these can be bad for your health if ingested,

• Look for options that don’t rely on single-use plastic, and;

• Investigate UPF clothing or swimwear as well.

Our top choice of sunscreen that ticks all the boxes? SunButter Skincare.

Underwater clean-up

Every year, an estimated 8 million tonnes of plastic waste ends up in the ocean. This includes everything from tiny microplastics to large debris, and much of it degrades into harmful substances, impacting marine life and disrupting delicate ecosystems.

Whether you’re walking along outside at the park or the beach, or you’re underwater, every single piece of trash that you remove and dispose of effectively, helps. If you’re underwater, be sure to only collect trash if you’re comfortable and have the proper training. Always dive or snorkel with a buddy, and ensure you have the correct equipment (mesh bag, gloves, dive knife) to retrieve and safely store the trash you collect. Once on dry land, make sure you dispose of anything you removed appropriately, in designated recycling or non-recycling bins.

If you get into the habit of removing just a few bits of trash each time the opportunity arises, you not only directly help to reduce pollution in our waters, but you lead by example and encourage others to follow suit as well.

Show your love for the ocean by following these tips and encouraging others to take easy, practical steps towards caring for our natural world. After all, the more we realise the value of Mother Nature, the more people will be driven to protect it, and that’s how we can drive real change from the ground up.

Written by Charlotte Hansford