Coasts of Playa del Carmen, flooded with sargasso

It is expected that by the end of April, the Semar will install the barriers to contain the macroalgae.

The coasts of Playa del Carmen registered the highest arrival of sargasso so far this year, with an upward trend, however, it is expected that until the end of April the Secretariat of the Mexican Navy (Semar) will install the barriers to contain the macroalgae.
The main beaches of the center of the city dawned yesterday with a thick layer of sargassum, particularly on El Recodo beach, one of the most central coastal stretches that is a must for tourists and a shelter area for boats.
“Two days ago we had a meeting with the Secretary of the Navy and they informed us that they will be able to install the installation by the end of April. It will take a little while because they have their own timelines and until those dates the resources will be available for the installation,” said Lourdes Várguez Ocampo, director of the Federal Maritime Terrestrial Zone (Zofemat).
As of March 1, around three thousand tons of sargassum had reached the coasts of Solidaridad.

About 700 tons landed in January, so approximately 75% has arrived in February and the first hours of March.

The tendency of arrival, said Várguez Ocampo, is to increase. Currently, the work of containing sargassum on the high seas corresponds to the Semar, where for now there is no operation to block the arrival of the macroalgae.

“In fact, they should have been installed last month and they are still not installing them, they are rescuing the anchor points”, said Várguez.
Until Thursday afternoon, the port remained closed to small boats due to strong winds from the southeast, a factor that favors the arrival of the macroalgae.

Fishermen and tourism service providers from the Caribbean Sea tourism cooperative announced that the losses are incalculable, just when the Riviera Maya destination concluded with an occupancy rate of over 90% in February.

TYT Newsroom