Chávez V, Uribe-Martínez A, Cuevas E, Rodríguez Martínez RE, VAN TUSSENBROEK BI, Francisco V, Estévez M, Celis LB, Monroy-Velázquez LV, Leal-Bautista R, Álvarez-Filip L, García-Sánchez M, Masia L, Silva R,
2020
Revistas indexadas
Massive Influx of Pelagic Sargassum spp. on the Coasts of the Mexican Caribbean 2014–2020: Challenges and Opportunities
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CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y EL COSMOS
OTRAS ESPECIALIDADES EN MATERIA DE CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA DEL COSMOS Y DEL MEDIO AMBIENTE
Since late 2014, the Mexican Caribbean coast has periodically received massive, atypical influxes of pelagic Sargassum spp. (sargasso). Negative impacts associated with these influxes include mortality of nearshore benthic flora and fauna, beach erosion, pollution, decreasing tourism and high management costs. To understand the dynamics of the sargasso influx, we used Landsat 8 imagery (from 2016 to mid-2020) to record the coverage of sargasso in the sea o the Mexican Caribbean coastline, with a maximum reported in September 2018. Satellite image analysis also showed local di erences in the quantity of beached sargasso along the coastline. Over the years, good practice for collection on the beach and for o -shore collection of sargasso have been established through trial and error, and the Mexican Government and hotel industry have spent millions of dollars on removal and o -shore detention of sargasso. Notwithstanding, sargasso also has various properties that could be harnessed in local industries. The stimulation of local industrial growth would o er alternatives to the dependence on tourism, as a circular economy, based on sargasso, is developed.
Water
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