Cancun, QR. Given the arrival of more than 32,000 tons of sargassum on the beaches of Quintana Roo, the head of the Secretary of the Navy, Rafael Ojeda, announced the reinforcement of the strategy with more containment barriers and the construction of more barges to collect the algae. at sea.
“We can say that the current situation is alarming, it is located in a category 8 that corresponds to a determination of excessive sargassum that could arrive,” he explained.
Currently, a total of 328 elements of the Navy are deployed in the 2022 operation, supported by 11 sargacero ships, 23 smaller vessels, five air units, an oceanic sargacero ship and a support ship.
The admiral reported that from February 15 of this year to April 29, 97 tons and more than 9,400 tons of sargassum have been collected on the coast in the municipalities of Isla Mujeres, Benito Juárez, Puerto Morelos, Cozumel, Solidaridad, Tulum, Othón P. Blanco and Mahahual, Quintana Roo.
Ojeda Durán stressed that the sargassum phenomenon affects many countries, but only in Mexico have federal and local authorities come together to deal with it.
As part of the strategy, he explained that the sargacero ship “Hystrix” collected 5.7 tons of sargassum in the vicinity of Puerto Morelos; 30 double anchor points were marked out for the sargassum containment barrier in Playa del Carmen, covering 457 meters of barrier, with the support of underwater work personnel and crews from smaller vessels.
Likewise, the sargasso ships “Fluitans”, “Horneri” and “Rigidulum” are in the vicinity of Puerto Aventuras, to continue with the trip plan to their area of operations as soon as weather conditions allow it; No installation of containment barriers or collection of sargassum was carried out in Mahahual due to prevailing adverse weather conditions for navigation in the area.
In addition, 618 people participate through a temporary employment program for the collection of sargassum.