HMB Sargassum Project
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Up and down the Riviera Maya, beaches like Half Moon Bay (HMB) are being inundated with huge mats of rotting sargassum. As these mats pile up on the shore, the stench of decaying seaweed and the hordes of buzzing flies are impossible to ignore. But the impact of this sargassum infestation goes far beyond a few ruined beach vacations in 2021.
The seasonal infestation of sargassum began in the summer of 2011, hit us especially hard in 2015 and 2019 and is now hitting us again in 2021. Beached sargassum wreaks havoc on the environment, on human and marine health, on tourism and on local economies. This article from the Washington Post dated August 2019 (when sargassum infestations were significantly lower than in 2021) presents the magnitude of the problem very clearly: WaPo Aug 2019
The sargassum invasion is here to stay.
Doing nothing about it IS NOT an option!
HMB Sargassum Project
The HMB Sargassum Project was started by a group of concerned HMB property owners committed to addressing the sargasso problem both locally and across the wider Caribbean. Our goal is to get the entire North Akumal community cooperating and brainstorming on the best ways to mitigate the impact of ongoing seasonal sargassum infestations.
Our research indicates that installing a barrier outside the reef in Half Moon Bay will be the most environmentally sound and cost effective way to mitigate the impact of sargasso and we want to tell you why.
The numbers show that doing nothing about the sargassum issue could cost North Akumal as much as nine million dollars over 5 years in increased costs and lost revenue. So it’s our goal to act as quickly as possible to raise funds for a barrier BEFORE the 2022 Sargassum Season starts. And to do this we must have our ducks in a row by the end of August.
This website is a FIRST STEP in that process. It includes a “pledge form” that will help us gauge how many community stakeholders are concerned enough about the seasonal sargassum infestations to consider a financial contribution towards mitigating the problem. We hope that YOU will consider pledging your support as we move forward, even (or especially!) if you are not yet convinced about the efficacy of the specific solution we propose.
We’re in this together.
Your input and support are important!
Please use these links to learn more and, if you support our goal of taking action ASAP, please also pledge your support!
