Advancing Research on Understanding Environmental Effects of UV Filters from Sunscreens: Proceedings of a Workshop (2023)
Chapter: Closing Remarks
Closing Remarks
The two-day workshop provided a forum for lively multidisciplinary, cross-sector discussions building upon the 2022 report Review of Fate, Exposure, and Effects of Sunscreens in Aquatic Environments and Implications for Sunscreen Usage and Human Health. Participants explored the current state of knowledge and future research areas to gather data to inform EPA ERAs of UV filters.
Reflecting on the workshop’s first day, Menzie said that the discussions of analytical methods crystallized the many difficulties of understanding and measuring the environmental effects of UV filters. Participants delved into the challenges of establishing the sampling and analytical methods to characterize real-world exposures. This includes addressing aspects of how UV filters enter water and in what magnitudes, and how that varies over time and space. It also includes attention to sunscreen formulations, mixing in the environment, and how the interactions between chemicals might influence the fates of different UV filters. Participants also discussed the complexities of understanding routes of exposure in water and sediments, how relevant chemicals may transform or accumulate in biological systems, and novel and emerging research methods for advancing knowledge in these areas.
The workshop’s second day examined standardized approaches for toxicity testing of UV filters. With a particular focus on the complexities of working with corals, presenters, panelists, and other workshop participants discussed a wide range of challenges in toxicological testing involving nonstandard species and nonstandard endpoints. Participants considered recent findings and approaches that can help to address some of these challenges and discussed future research areas that could help to further refine protocols. Participants also discussed broader opportunities to facilitate the sharing of testing methods and data and lay the groundwork for reliable, defensible data that can be used for ERAs.
In their discussions on both days, many participants mentioned the importance of multidisciplinary, cross-sector collaboration to help standardize methods to yield reproducible and reliable results across laboratories and to help create a baseline level of understanding of the effects of chronic and acute exposures to UV filters and related chemicals. Closing the workshop, Mitchelmore emphasized the desire to continue conversations among researchers, industry, and government bodies about how best to fund and conduct the needed research, disseminate findings, and support informed decision-making.
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