Our Coast to Coral Community talk series is back for 2020! Join Reef Check Australia and friends at The Bearded Lady for an evening of discovery, inspiration and appreciation of our local marine, coastal and catchment environments.

This month we'll hear from Elissa O'Malley from the University of Queensland, who will be speaking about the the environmental effects of sunscreen. 

The active ingredients in sunscreen are called UV filters and typically, several of them are used in each sunscreen. These chemicals can make their way into the environment after they are washed off skin or clothing and are frequently released into the environment due to their regular use. Recent studies investigating the harmful effects of UV filters to aquatic species have given rise to concern over the presence of these chemicals in the environment. In Australia however, there has been little research conducted into answering the question, should we be concerned about the wash-off of sunscreen into our beaches, reefs, lakes and waterways.

Elissa has studied the concentrations and behavior of UV filters at two recreational sites in South East Queensland to start addressing this question within Australia.

About the speaker:

Elissa is in her final year of PhD research at The University of Queensland. The topic of her project is to investigate the sources and occurrence of UV filters (sunscreen chemicals) in the aquatic environment within Australia.

Elissa completed a Bachelor of Environmental Science (Honours) in 2013 and since then has furthered her knowledge of, and love for, the environment through her PhD studies as well as various volunteer activities. She is an active member of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) and a committed volunteer of the Australian Conservation Foundation.


18:00 Bar opens

18:30 Grab a seat (they go fast!)

18:45 Talk kicks off

19:30 Pizza and good sea-minded conversation

Entry is $3 (which gets you pizza at the end).

As the venue is a bar, under-18s are most welcome but must be accompanied by an adult. And a 5 year gap is necessary, ie. 17-yr-old cannot be accompanied by an 18-yr-old.

For more information contact Reef Check Australia: [email protected]

This initiative is hosted by Reef Check Australia, and proudly supported by Queensland Government Community Sustainability Action Grants, with amazing in-kind support from The Bearded Lady.

Future talks take place on the last Tuesday night of each month, with a new, interesting and engaging speaker.