Choosing Eau Thermale Avène Sun Care means protecting your skin while respecting nature. With thirty years of innovation and know-how, Avène Thermal Spring Laboratories create skin-friendly products that are formulated to be tolerated by the most sensitive skin types and which do not pollute the oceans. Since 2013, we have been developing our sun care products with a view to minimising their impact on the environment. Our products are formulated with minimal sun filters and without silicones for optimal biodegradability** and reduced impact, always meeting the three criteria that define the Skin Protect Ocean Respect Eau Thermale Avène Formulation Charter: safety [...], efficacy and tolerance.
A first study on coral
In 2019, Eau Thermale Avène had the toxicity of its sun creams (Tinosorb S, Tinosorb M, Parsol 1789, Uvasorb HEB) assessed by the Observatoire Océanologique de Banyuls-sur-Mer. This first study demonstrated the safety of the Avène Thermal Water filtering system on the coral Pocillopora Damicornis. This species is particularly widespread and forms part of the Great Barrier Reef*. Coral reefs are known to be particularly threatened by sun creams and the bleaching effect they have. But coral is only one link in the chain; it’s not representative of marine biodiversity as a whole.
*Study conducted with concentrations representative of those found in the environment.
To understand the impact of its creams on the whole marine ecosystem, Eau Thermale Avène decided to continue investigations and evaluate the impact of its filters on the plankton organisms at the base of the food chain, and which play a key role in maintaining the balance of marine life and the cycle of elements allowing life on earth.
This ground breaking study* has shown that our sunscreens have no impact on one species of phytoplankton and one species of zooplankton.
*Study conducted on two representative plankton models with concentrations representative of those found in the environment.
Since 2016, Eau Thermale Avène has been committed to the Pur Projet association, a social enterprise that supports companies to integrate climate issues into the heart of their value chain as part of a sustainable partnership to regenerate and protect marine ecosystems in Indonesia.
This community-based project aims to revive damaged coral reefs, preserve mangrove forests and improve the environmental practices of local communities, including recycling plastic waste. Between 2016 and 2018, our partnership has installed 42 structures and replanted 6120 corals of 16 different species and planted 2000 mangrove trees. The 2021 objective of the partnership is to replant 10,000 corals, 6,000 mangrove trees and to collect and recycle 81 tonnes of waste.
Eau Thermale Avène's local actions to preserve the oceans
Everywhere in the world, from Turkey and Greece to Brazil, Chile and Argentina, the Eau Thermale Avène brand holds high its values of environmental protection and is growing its number of initiatives with the help of local associations to raise awareness of this major issue: cleaning beaches, educating the population and enhancing biodiversity. Since 2020 in Mo'orea, in the heart of the Pacific Ocean, Eau Thermale Avène has joined forces with the Coral Gardeners teams to extend their coral restoration action internationally and contribute to preserving this ecosystem. Since 2017, more than 14,000 fragments have been replanted by the organisation in different parts of the Mo'orea lagoon. There, the reefs are not only a shelter for the local fauna and flora but also for the local population.
*Tests carried out by the Observatoire Océanologique de Banyuls-sur-Mer, a partner of the European Marine Biological Resource Center, on 3 key marine biodiversity species - one coral species, one phytoplankton species and one zooplankton species - at concentrations representative of those found in the environment for sunscreens. TriAsorB™ was tested using the same methodologies and by the same researchers as in the following publications: Stien, D. et al. A unique approach to monitor stress in coral exposed to emerging pollutants. Scientific Reports 10, 9601 (2020). Thorel, E. et al. Effect of 10 UV Filters on the Brine Shrimp Artemia salina and the Marine Microalga Tetraselmis sp. Toxics 8, 29 (2020).
** According to the OECD 301b test
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