by Donald Wood
Last updated: 8:50 AM ET, Thu April 6, 2023
Mexico’s Naval Secretary announced the country successfully installed
over 9,000 meters of anti-sargassum barriers along the coast of Quintana Roo.
According to Riviera
Maya News, Mexican Secretary of the Navy Jose Rafael Ojeda Duran announced
the progress during a presentation of the country’s 2023 Sargassum Operation
plan.
In total, the Navy has installed 9,050 meters (around 29,691
feet) of anti-sargassum barriers, including 1,850 meters in Othon P. Blanco
(Chetumal and Mahahual), 2,400 meters in Puerto Morelos, 2,500 meters in
Solidaridad (Playa del Carmen and Puerto Aventuras) and 2,300 in Tulum.
Ojeda Duran also revealed the Navy employs 328 people and 16
small boats dedicated to removing the stinky seaweed along the Quintana Roo
coast. Another 11 sargasso vessels are serving in the region to assist with
at-sea collection.
The Mexican Navy revealed its sargassum vessels would be
spread out through the region, with two stationed in Cancun, two in Puerto
Morelos, two in Solidaridad, three in Othon P. Blanco, one for Isla Mujeres and
one in Tulum.
In March, Florida Atlantic University researcher Dr. Brian
Lapointe said an enormous algae mass has formed for the 2023 season, spanning across
5,000 miles. Lapointe explained that this year’s sargassum bloom began
developing early and doubled in size between December and January.
The floating expanse, "was larger in January than it
has ever been since this new region of sargassum growth began in 2011,"
Lapointe said. "This is an entirely new oceanographic phenomenon that is
creating such a problem-really a catastrophic problem-for tourism in the
Caribbean region, where it piles up on beaches up to 5 or 6 feet deep.”
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