Mexico’s Caribbean coast continues to battle against record levels of seaweed
Beaches along much of Mexico’s Caribbean coast are covered with seaweed, also known as sargassum.
But Mexico is not alone. Several Caribbean destinations including Puerto Rico to Barbados are suffering from a similar fate.
The presence of seaweed in the Caribbean is nothing new, but has increased dramatically over the past few years.
Along several beaches such as Cancún and Playa del Carmen, large clean-up crews gather as much of the seaweed as possible, often with the aid of specialized equipment.
“This is extremely concerning. Seaweed concentration in the Caribbean is up 20% since 2018, which itself broke several records,” said a professor of Oceanography at USF, Chuanmin Hu on NPR.
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The situation has become so dire that the federal government has ordered the Navy to aid in cleanup efforts.
There are, however, spots along Mexico’s Caribbean coast that still remain almost entirely seaweed free, such as Isla Mujeres and parts of Cozumel.
Also virtually intact are Yucatán’s beaches on much of the Gulf of Mexico, such as Progreso, Sisal, and Celestún.
Sargasso is a type of brown macroalgae found in temperate and tropical oceans around the world. It typically inhabits shallow water and coral reefs.
Scientists believe that the proliferation of sargassum over the last decade in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico is caused by rising sea temperatures associated with global warming.
Senior Editor Carlos Rosado van der Gracht is a Mexican expedition/Canadian photographer, adventure leader, and PhD candidate. Born in Mérida, Carlos holds multimedia, philosophy, and translation degrees from universities in Mexico, Canada and Norway.
