The arrival of sargassum in the Caribbean can be an opportunity for various industries, and in recent years different initiatives have promoted its use as a raw material. ", Lakes Beach is covered in sargassum in St. Andrew along the east coast of Barbados on July 27. Belize : SPTC tackling the Sargassum issue with a new response plan, 18/02/2023 NASA-USF & SIMAR-SATsum-Conabio Sargassum Seaweed Bulletin, 11/02/2023 NASA-USF & SIMAR-SATsum-Conabio Sargassum Seaweed Bulletin, Martinique : Sargasses, le littoral mconnaissable du Vauclin, 05/02/2023 Sargassum seaweed Satellite views. Our maps are updated 365 days/year with photos/videos & dates. More than 24 million tons of sargassum blanketed the Atlantic in June, up from 18.8 million tons in May, according to a monthly report published by the University of South Florida's Optical Oceanography Lab that noted "a new historical record.". I did, too, before our trip last April. Id suggest this be a collaborative effort that includes every governmental, environmental, residential and business entity that calls the Keys home. According to Reportur , the amount of sargassum floating in the Central Atlantic Ocean in November 2022 increased to an astounding 6 million tons by December 2022. GLADYS SERRANO And if the seaweed is heavier due to a storm, Atlantis rakes their beach daily, so there shouldn't be an issue. Therefore, the best time to visit is January and February. There is seaweed everywhere, that's just how things are unless you're staying at a resort where the house elves rake it all up for you while you're sleeping. Key West insurance | Is wind, flood coverage worse than the storms? our team is independent. Such are the cycles of nature. Some ecological good news, courtesy of some hungry shelled swimmers. Offer subject to change without notice. One year we had to drive 20 miles north into the Sian Kaan to find a beach to swim on. more. Travel Advisory 2023, Is La Paz, Mexico Safe? If you want a happy-face spin on the state of Key West sargassum 2022, you best look elsewhere because wait for it Mary, Joseph and the Wee Donkey, that black, decaying algae is piled up past my thighs, the off-beach waters are a gooey chocolate sludge and the smell, which can darn near knock you down at first whiff, permeates the island 10 blocks in from the shoreline. In fact, experts are predicting that the sargassum crisis in 2023 could be as bad as the one in 2022, or even worse. According to Rodrguez, even though there is not enough information on the biomass that is reaching the different regions of the Caribbean, which fluctuates every year, everything suggests that not only the problem will remain, but it will take a turn for the worse.. MIAMI ( April 22, 2022 ) Sargassum season is in full effect in Miami-Dade County. Re: Sargassum/seaweed problems this summer? But that Im here now, so pull up the drawbridge culture is as unproductive as is the sargassum happens every summer crowd. Now, in the last decade, sargassum has been invading the Caribbean coasts, destroying its ecosystem and becoming a threat to the tourism sector. By analyzing satellite images collected over the past 19 years across the region theyve dubbed the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt, researchers led by the University of South Floridas Mengqiu Wang have untangled some of the factors that contribute to the bloomsand predicted that shorelines will continue to be choked with seaweed. I will be visiting the Marathon area. Far from being an isolated phenomenon, the problem is impacting a large part of the Caribbean. South Floridas beaches see record volume this summer, Sargassum, the brown tide that is invading the Caribbean. But, argue many locals, this happens every year and who cares if visitors stop coming because the beaches are nasty? USF-NASA : 2023 major blooms of sargassum ? USF / NASA Alert: Second consecutive monthly doubling of Sargassum ! So, no, there isn't a Sargassum problem in the Bahamas. The problem has worsened as clumps multiplied, fueled by nutrients and strong sunlight. We are well past the who or what is to blame stage. more. When the water temperature is right and enough seeds persist from the previous years batch, the conditions are ideal for another supersized bloom the following spring. Belize : SPTC tackling the Sargassum issue with a new response plan, 18/02/2023 NASA-USF & SIMAR-SATsum-Conabio Sargassum Seaweed Bulletin, 11/02/2023 NASA-USF & SIMAR-SATsum-Conabio Sargassum Seaweed Bulletin, Martinique : Sargasses, le littoral mconnaissable du Vauclin, 05/02/2023 Sargassum seaweed Satellite views. Browse forums All Caribbean forums Bahamas forum Watch this Topic Get answers to your questions about Bahamas Ask a question Bahamas All Inclusive/Adult Only/Smaller Resorts 3 replies "2022 will be another major Sargassum year," stated the bulletin. USF / NASA Alert: Second consecutive monthly doubling of Sargassum ! As predicted, small amount was observed in the CS and minimal amount was observed in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), but moderate to large amounts of Sargassum were . On Union Island, which is part of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the seaweed invasion has forced some resorts to close for up to five months in the past. 2023 Atlas Obscura. Lol, well its absolutely full of it now. Latest Cancun coast seaweed map, January 16, 2023 (Source: FB Red de Monitoreo del Sargazo de Quintana Roo, As of January 2023, all Cancun and other beaches in Mexican Caribbean are free of seaweed. USF-NASA : 2023 major blooms of sargassum ? There is seaweed everywhere, that's just how things are unless you're staying at a resort where the house elves rake it all up for you while you're sleeping. Scientists say more research is needed to determine why sargassum levels in the region are reaching new highs, but the United Nations' Caribbean Environment Program says possible factors include a rise in water temperatures as a result of climate change and nitrogen-laden fertilizers and sewage waste fueling algae blooms. We like to rough it and are not "resort" types, but if you can't go swimming (no pool), you might as well stay home. Its too early to predict sargassum beachings in September. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. An investigation was carried out in collaboration with the Gulf and Caribbean Oceanographic Institut to ascertain how much sargassum might ultimately enter the Mexican Caribbean. Since 2011, the seaweed has made a mess across the tropical Atlantic, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and east coast of Florida. Nonetheless, Rodrguez explains that the resources invested so far have not been efficient. (It looks a whole lot like the seaweed, but with fins and eyeballs.) Follow the brown seaweeds invasion, check the older maps : Since 2018: See. Beaches in the hotel zone in Cancun are still relatively clean and well-maintained but plenty of the beaches on the coast such as Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Akumal or Playacar have already high levels of seaweed. What transportation is available between the islands? Sargassum Seaweed in 2022 and 2023 Sargassum seaweed in Playa del Carmen, Mexico on August 7, 2022 (Credit: Doctry 360) However, it's important to note that even on islands affected by an influx of sargassum algae there are often beaches that are totally clear on the same island. The Keys struggle under the load of hundreds of thousands of visitors, vehicles and vacations. Like Atlas Obscura and get our latest and greatest stories in your Facebook feed. Members who are knowledgeable about this destination and volunteer their time to answer travelers' questions. - they are up-dated 7/7, 365 days/year. Anyone have info about sargassum in the (ta && ta.queueForLoad ? The team suspects that the blooms are fed by fertilizers and other nutrients washing in from the Amazon River and nourished by upwelling from deeper waters off the coast of West Africa. Other island nations have opted to use heavy machinery to remove seaweed from the beach, but scientists warn that causes erosion and could destroy the nests of endangered turtles. Sargassum, the brown tide that is invading the Caribbean The phenomenon has broken records this year and has become one of the great environmental concerns of the coastal areas of the region Tourists swim at Xcalacoco beach next to sargassum in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo. 1. Every seaside beach in the Caribbean, western Mexico and into the Gulf of Mexico is swearing at this new sargassum and helpless to do much about it. FRANCE : Le ministre dlgu au Outre-mer Jean-Franois Carenco a annonc la cration, au 15 octobre 2022, de quatre structures pour grer le sujet sargasse aux Antilles. We cannot pretend it isnt happening. Does the scientific community expect the sargassum problem to improve, stay the same or get worse in the Florida Keys? Sign up for our newsletter and enter to win the second edition of our book. "This has been devastating for over a decade. Most of my concerns (turtle nesting, environmental impacts and long-term monitoring and maintenance) are addressed in the proposal and staff review. * Do not embed this map in a website or a blog without permission from Sargassum Monitoring. they are up-dated 7/7, 365 days/year. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico A record amount of seaweed is smothering Caribbean coasts from Puerto Rico to Barbados as tons of brown algae kill wildlife, choke the tourism industry and release toxic gases. http://sargassummonitoring.com/ we provide reliable information for tourists, travel agencies, journalists, scientists, academics, governments and more, looking for solutions. Levels in the northern Caribbean are at their third highest, following July 2018 and July 2021, he said. All rights reserved. Learn how to create your own. You claim this is a seaweed free area? Since 2011, the sargassum piling up on Caribbean beaches has come from a massive algae bloom off Brazils coast. Linda Grist Cunningham is editor and proprietor of Key West Island News and KeyWestWatch Media LLC. But she could use your help defraying expenses. Communiqu de Presse tlchargeable (format PDF) en Franais. When there are storms, we do get more seaweed than usual, but it's not exactly a "problem" like some other . South Floridas beaches see record volume this summer, Sargassum, the brown tide that is invading the Caribbean. Long Beach is covered with sargassum in Crest Church parish along the south coast of Barbados on July 27. SLS Baha Mar - need help deciding (option 2 is the Reef). Apparently, bad weather is hampering attempts. Hello! Don't let sargassum ruin your beach day! Satellite Activity: Sargassum Updated on March 14, 2022 Pelagic Sargassum is a buoyant macroalgae that forms rafts at the ocean surface and serve as a biologically rich habitat for hundreds of diverse marine species. Monroe County also knows it must get ahead of the increasing sargassum beachings or risk both our fragile island ecosystems and our summer tourism industry. Maybe or not, Key West cruise ships | Imagine the crowds if there were still three ships a day, Chinese spy balloon? But for the communities that often find themselves digging out from a mountain of sargassum, the whole situation stinks. */, Travelinglifestyle.net is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com, Copyright 2022 Traveling Lifestyle Network, LLC. It is abundant in the ocean and has leafy appendages, branches, and round, gas-filled structures called pneumatocysts, which are filled mostly with oxygen. "We were able to observe firsthand the effects of the Sargassum influx in the countries we visited. The sargassum weve dealt with since 2011 is not the sargassum of long-timer memories. Cleanup seems to be an excellent way to repurpose TDC dollars. In 2023, the estimation is not clear as its not possible to see it on the ocean from satellites yet. It is a clear example of how climate change affects us directly and indirectly, points out the biologist. We are working to prevent them from reaching the beaches and if they do, to collect them.. Brash, bold, and bigoted, he made for an uneasy national mascot. There is a forecast of about 32 thousand tons. Nevertheless, the seaweed problem is worsening in Cancun every year and if you are planning to spend quality time on the beach, then you want to avoid those 6 months of seaweed season. The phenomenon has broken records this year and has become one of the great environmental concerns of the coastal areas of the region. The video and photo below are from Coco Beach in Playa del Carmen (January 28 morning). Puerto Rico: Buscan soluciones en el Caribe al sargazo, que marc un rcord histrico, Afrique : Influence des algues sargasses (sargassum fluitans, sargassum natans) sur les activits socioconomiques le long du littoral ivoirien Cte dIvoire Afrique de louest, Puerto Rico : Record amount of seaweed chokes Caribbean beaches and shoreline, Mexico : SARGAZO PROVOCA MUERTE DE TORTUGAS EN MAHAHUAL. Ranger Ed and I did a quick walkabout of five Atlantic-facing Key West beaches on this weeks rainy Tuesday morning. It starts in April and finishes in October. Even if taxpayers were to agree to fund massive, multi-times-per-day clean ups that trucked away sargassum on the sand, wed not make a dent in whats waiting in the water to wash ashore. hide caption. "It did ruin my personal beach plans.". Thank you for support our work. But on Tuesday, the government announced it suspended removal efforts because the level of decomposition made it impractical. 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