Monitoring a new type of pollution in the Atlantic Ocean: the sargassum algae

Unprecedented massive landings of Sargassum are regularly registered since 2011 along the shorelines of a huge area encompassing French Guyana, the Antilles and Caribbean Sea. The phenomenon affects widely the West Indies (Guadeloupe, Martinique, Barbados ...), Dominican Republic, Mexico, etc. and many sightings have been reported. Algae arrive from the open sea in the form of large rafts (tens of km) after drifting over long distances from the Central Atlantic NERR and accumulating in consolidation areas in the Brazil retroflexion current and probably the Gulf of Guinea. Compared to previous years, 2018 is far the worst year in terms of Sargassum landings on Caribbean islands shorelines. Washing-ashore has substantial negative impacts on local populations, coastal marine ecosystems and the economy sector, especially tourism and fisheries that are severely affected.