Caribbean and Central American Countries Look at Long-Term Solutions to Solve Sargassum Issue

Travelers are beginning to grow concerned about the quality of their beach vacations. More and more frequently, reports of seaweed-covered beaches are worrying vacationers headed to Caribbean and Central American countries.

Resorts take extreme measures to control the onslaught of sargassum that can overwhelm beaches in the region and the problem continues to grow. However, sargassum isn't something that happens on a daily basis. It is key for visitors to understand that it is not every day or every beach, which has prompted the hashtag #NiTodosLosDiasNiEnTodasLasPlayas to trend.

Ana Mari Irabien, public relations director for AHRM, explained that the problem is regional and ongoing and one of the reasons for its continuation is climate change but that resorts are taking many measures to combat the buildup of seaweed.

“Sargasso is a regional problem that affects not only Mexico but the entire area of the Caribbean and the coast of Central America, as well the South Florida coast,” said Irabien.

The hotel industry doesn’t expect the situation to subside anytime soon and so they have developed both short- and long-term strategies to address the issue so that guests have the best possible experience at resorts throughout the region.

“Five years ago, as this problem was beginning, the tourist industry (mainly hoteliers) hired additional staff to carry out the harvesting of the Sargasso on the beach,” said Irabien. “As the problem has been increasing, some companies have resorted to buying specialized machinery to collect seaweed on the beaches as it is manually a very heavy job".

The solution of harvesting has been effective, but the seaweed removal has caused other problems such as erosion to occur and therefore capturing the sargassum before it reaches the shore is a method many resorts are turning to.

Desire Riviera Maya Resort recently announced that they have successfully provided a sargassum-free beach since April. The property has a 918-foot-long linear barrier at a cost of $60,000. The 1.6-foot-deep structure swiftly collects approximately 1 ton of sargassum per day.

The property’s sister resort, Desire Riviera Maya Pearl, will have a similar barrier installed in the coming months.

For travelers heading to the Mexican Caribbean who are concerned about sargassum, officials in the region are not shrugging off the problem and have convened to work on solutions.

“Quintana Roo made the call for the first regional meeting with the Caribbean and Central American countries at Moon Palace Resort,” said Irabien. “In this meeting, we hope to work out plans and regional strategies that will be put into place to enable us to carry out actions that will lead us to control the massive arrival of sargasso.”

“President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has instructed the Secretary of the Navy to lead the work and actions of removal, withdrawal and final destination of the sargasso in Quintana Roo and other states to solve this problematic growth,” she continued. “The Mexican Navy will build special vessels to collect the seaweed in the ocean.”

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The meeting, which took place on June 27, was attended by 13 countries, including Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti, Cuba, Panama, Guadalupe Island, Guyana, Belize and Guatemala.

Many prominent scientists and researchers also attended the event, and Donald R. Johnson and James S. Franks, senior research scientists at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, gave keynote addresses during the meeting. The 13 countries also agreed on a way forward, with 26 points that focus on long-term solutions.

In order to resolve the problem, the group agreed to work on both long- and short-term strategies and to pool resources and strengthen communication. A website has been created that will assist countries in monitoring, sargassum biology, arrival and collection cycles, social research and public health, industrialization, education and more.

Through growing communication efforts the group plans to establish lines of action and create a map to know the type of projects that are being developed, identify projects that can be linked and generate bilateral and multilateral alliances.

The group also plans to share information about the state of sargassum through documentaries produced by international television channels that show the different positions and actions taken on this subject.

Through these methods and more, the 13 countries affected by the proliferation of sargassum hope to be able to develop workable solutions that will eliminate the growing amounts of seaweed clogging waterways and piling up on some of the world's most beautiful and pristine beaches.