The Sargassum Monitoring Network has updated its forecast for Cancun, indicating an increase in sargassum will begin in the coming week. The Sargassum Monitoring Network monitors the arrival of Sargassum throughout the year and warns coastal tourist sites such as Cancun of the impending presence of Sargassum.
Sargassum removal was the primary means of eradication in 2022, one of the worst years on record for the invasive seaweed. Along with clearing sargassum by hand from the Cancun beaches, heavy machinery was also deployed.
There have been many short-term solutions suggested to deal with sargassum, but none have actually solved the issue as of yet, either because they weren’t adequate or because they weren’t used to their full potential.
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In fact, a task force was formed in Cancun in 2022 to collaborate on developing ideas for a more comprehensive solution to the problem. The group consisted of government officials, business leaders, scientists, academics, and researchers from diverse educational backgrounds. They needed to develop better methods to get rid of the problem, but they also needed to figure out how to keep it from reaching the beaches of the Mexican Caribbean.
Having navy ships gather sargassum before it reaches the coast is one way to get rid of it. Installing barriers to prevent it from washing up was one small-scale method of preventing it from reaching the coast. Both of these approaches have offered some relief when applied, albeit neither has yet fully solved the issue.
For the time being, it appears that more attention is being paid to tracking sargassum throughout its course in order to alert authorities when it is moving in large enough quantities to threaten the Mexican Caribbean. And even if its presence this year is unavoidable, there are some periods you can travel when it probably won’t be as bad, especially in the early winter.
You can keep track of which beaches have less sargassum by keeping up with the Sargassum Monitoring Network. Some beaches will also have less sargassum than others.