27 million tons of sargassum choke Caribbean and Mexico coasts
Why it matters: Mexico plans a $115 million response as the rotting seaweed hits tourism, marine life and cleanup capacity.
Record mats of sargassum are spreading across the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, darkening beaches, killing marine life and hurting tourism in Mexico’s Caribbean coast. The University of South Florida’s Optical Oceanography Lab recorded about 27 million metric tons across the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf in July, after 34 million tons in June. Scientists said this year is unusual because large amounts are growing locally in the Caribbean and Gulf instead of only drifting in from West Africa. Mexico said it will invest $115 million to fight the bloom, which can dump as much as 9,000 tons a day on its Caribbean shoreline while current capacity can collect only 1,200 tons daily.