Mexico’s Sargassum Monitoring Network (RDMS) has discovered 7,400 tons of sargassum (5,000 square kilometers) floating towards six Caribbean hotspots.
Unfavorable dominant winds from east to west in the Atlantic Sea have experts predicting that hundreds of tons of that sargassum will reach several countries within two weeks.
“Main geostrophic ocean currents and dominant winds, running from east to west, will drag this sargassum into the waters of the Mexican Caribbean in the coming weeks,” reads the RDMS rack.
The invasionas the RDMS calls it, is expected to hit Caribbean beaches from June to August. In other words, summer plans could be affected in many parts of these places.
The most affected destinations include:
- The Mexican Caribbean coast
- Turks and Caicos Islands
- Miami, Florida (USA)
- Dominican Republic
- Jamaica
- The Lesser Antillean Arc Islands
Source: FB Group – Algues sargasses Punta Cana Sargassum seaweed
According to the ORG Ocean ConservancyThe more sargassum there is, the more sargassum there will be, which in practical terms means that seeing tropical beaches buried under tons of sargassum during the summer has the potential to become the ‘new normal’.
To address this problem, countries such as Mexico have increased their sargassum alert level from green to yellow (level 3) in Quintana Roo.
More than 300,000 tons of sargassum are expected to land on Mexican beaches this year, breaking records from previous seasons.
Holidaymakers have been advised not to swim if there is too much sargassum in the water.
Other countries, such as the Dominican Republic, are installing ocean barriers to collect seaweed from the open sea. However, the same barriers installed in Mexico have shown their ineffectiveness when the winds are strong.
Is sargassum still safe for people and ecosystems?
Yes and no. If it is not too plentiful, people can walk for miles on the beach without any problem.
But when we have a mass arrival, it quickly disintegrates, releasing a nauseating odor and causing rashes if you overexpose your skin to it.
In the animal kingdom, dolphins, sea turtles and other ocean creatures become entangled in huge blobs of seaweed, dying because they are “unable to come up for air.”
This seaweed also changes water chemistry, creating a polluted environment in which marine species can no longer survive.
