Mexico unveils plan to tackle Caribbean seaweed invasion at popular beaches
According to marine experts with the University of South Florida, 2025 could be another major Sargassum year. It is too soon to determine if the seaweed will plaque Florida like in 2023, but any widespread reports likely would not happen before the summer. The origins of the Sargassum explosion are somewhat murky, but experts believe fertilizer runoff and deforestation in South America may be primary sources.
University of South Florida tracking sargassum seaweed using NASA/NOAA satellites
While the seaweed isn't harmful, it's unattractive for residents and visitors to the beach and can leave a stench if left untouched.
MÉRIDA, Mexico - The Mexican government has announced plans to intensify efforts to combat the annual influx of sargassum seaweed along the shores of its major tourism hubs, as the seasonal invasion is expected to begin in just months.
As part of the government’s Sargassum Response Strategy, officials say they will focus on discovery and containment efforts in the waters surrounding nearly four dozen popular beaches along the Yucatán Peninsula and Caribbean coast.
The government reports that sargassum typically washes ashore between April and October but, due to climate change, its increased presence has become particularly problematic in recent years.
The foul odor and unpleasant sites produced by the seaweed can impact tourism and marine ecosystems.
Communities highlighted by the government’s plan include areas around Cozumel and Playa del Carmen, which are popular destinations for cruise lines.
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PUERTO JUAREZ, MEXICO - DECEMBER 16, 2023: A family enjoys a dip in the sea at a beach covered with sargassum seaweed on December 16, 2023, in Puerto Juarez, Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico.
(Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The foul odor and unpleasant sites produced by the seaweed can impact tourism and marine ecosystems.
The country’s plan is composed of four key phases consisting of preparation, detection, containment and collection.
The government says it’ll concentrate on the first phases, making sure barriers, boats and personnel are ready until the threat for containment and the need for collection arises.
While the seaweed might look unpleasant, health experts say it is largely non-harmful to humans.
Tiny creatures that bury in the globs can produce rashes and blisters if contact is made with the skin.
For some species of marine life, the brown algae is considered to be helpful, and biologists believe that the buildup provides food and refuge for small fish, crabs, shrimp and other organisms.
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2025 could be another year for increased activity
Marine experts at the University of South Florida are warning that early indications from observations across the Atlantic basin indicate that 2025 could be another busy year for algae.
While levels continue to be low in the Gulf and the Caribbean Sea, amounts of seaweed in the western and eastern Atlantic exceed the 75 percentile, with more than 7 million metric tons detected.
"As in most previous years, February is expected to see increased Sargassum from January. More Sargassum is expected to enter the Caribbean Sea through the Lesser Antilles. Sargassum in the western Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico will likely remain very low. However, the continuous and significant increases in total amounts of Sargassum in the tropical Atlantic reinforce our earlier prediction that 2025 is likely another major Sargassum year," the university stated during a recent update.
Map of Sargassum distribution from January 2025
(USF / FOX Weather)
In 2023, Florida beaches and islands across the Caribbean Sea faced a record-breaking onslaught of Sargassum during the spring and summer.
Satellites estimated the algae to be in the neighborhood of 13 million metric tons, more than double the amount detected during a given year.
The exact trigger of the seaweed is somewhat unknown, with experts pointing to fertilizer runoff and deforestation in South America as potentially being leading causes.
If the mounds of seaweed reach beaches in the continental U.S., it would be at least late spring before the Florida Keys would see widespread reports and likely into the summer along the Florida Peninsula.
How seaweed from the Sargasso Sea could have spread to the tropical Atlantic and Caribbean
(NOAA)