Foreign Relations Minister Roberto Alvarez is motivating a regional project to tackle seaweed, Diario Libre reports. During the Sargassum Conference hosted in the Dominican Republic on Thursday, 16 June 2023, business solutions were presented and regional experts, tourism representatives and government officials spoke of the problems, impacts and possible solutions to the region’s massive proliferation of algae. The experts advocate for a regional project that promotes greater research and funding strategies.
“Our efforts cannot be in isolation, or we will not succeed. Sargasso requires a cooperative and collective solution from the region,” said Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez, during the opening of the Wider Caribbean – European Union Regional Conference: “Turning Sargasso into an Opportunity”.
The conference made clear that the present solution of harvesting seaweed is one of high cost for the collection and transport. It is estimated that 70 million tons of sargassum will arrive this year to the Caribbean, according to data offered at the event.
“The issue is how we are going to distribute the cost of the investment that must be made to be able to collect such a large volume and guarantee a safe final destination in the Dominican Republic,” said the Minister of the Environment Miguel Ceara Hatton.
An economist, Ceara Hatton also raised the need to promote industrial experience with seaweed. “The citizenship tells us in good faith that we can produce blocks, shirts, tennis shoes even salads, but none of that is a solution when we have a scale of a magnitude of 70 or 40 million tons of sargassum,” he said.
At the event, Rosa Rodriguez, a researcher from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) presented data on the cost of cleaning up sargassum on Mexican beaches, specifically in the tourist area of the coastal city of Puerto Morelos.
In that sense, she explained that the cleaning of one kilometer of beach can cost between US$800,000 and US$1.5 million dollars a year. “Monthly expenses can range from US$16,000 to US$100,000 per kilometer,” she said.
Rodriguez said that in view of these costs: “We have to make informed decisions; which zones we are going to choose, which are priorities for tourism, from the environmental point of view and from the point of view of the effects on vulnerable communities”.
Andres Marranzini, vice president of the National Association of Hotels and Tourism (Asonahores), agreed with Rodriguez by pointing out that in the Dominican case the costs assumed by hoteliers are around US$70,000 per month.
As part of the conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Relations convention center, exhibits were presented by companies that use the seaweed for agricultural, fuel and pharmaceutical applications.
Superior Education Minister Franklin García Fermín said the Presidency has made available US$1 million for algae-related research.
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Diario Libre
Diario Libre
19 June 2023