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Sheinbaum Launches $115 M Navy-Backed Sargassum Trap

8/1/2026

Summary

Sheinbaum launches sargassum

President Claudia Sheinbaum announced a $115 million plan that deploys 200-foot ships and 30 miles of barriers to trap sargassum on Caribbean coast.
The Navy supports the effort with 11 vessels, an amphibious collector and drones, while up to 9,000 tons of sargassum arrive daily in Quintana Roo, four times last year.
Governor Mara Lezama says management costs equal 11 % of the state’s GDP—$2 billion annually—and scientists cite warmer waters, nutrient runoff and longer sunlight.

Summary

NASA maps sargassum

NASA’s PACE satellite, launched Feb 2024, uses the Ocean Color Instrument to produce daily hyperspectral sargassum maps.
USF scientists Chuanmin Hu and Brian Barnes blend OCI data with MODIS and VIIRS to create composites that show June 2026 as the second-largest concentration.
Lin Qi converts OCI reflectance spikes into biomass, estimating 3.6 Mt in the western Caribbean and 9 Mt in the eastern Caribbean for June 2026.

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Sheinbaum launches sargassum

President Claudia Sheinbaum announced a $115 million plan that deploys 200-foot ships and 30 miles of barriers to trap sargassum on Caribbean coast.
The Navy supports the effort with 11 vessels, an amphibious collector and drones, while up to 9,000 tons of sargassum arrive daily in Quintana Roo, four times last year.
Governor Mara Lezama says management costs equal 11 % of the state’s GDP—$2 billion annually—and scientists cite warmer waters, nutrient runoff and longer sunlight.

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