REAL TIME SARGASSUM REPORT
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The beaches of Bávaro, in the tourist district of Verón-Punta Cana, woke up once again covered in sargassum over the past few days. 

The massive presence of sargassum seaweed on Punta Cana beaches has once again generated environmental and tourism concerns in late May, after images circulated showing a significant accumulation of this macroalga in various coastal areas of the country’s main tourist destination.

Experts warn that the accumulation of sargassum on the coasts can cause significant damage to marine ecosystems by blocking sunlight and reducing oxygen levels in the water. This situation impacts coral reefs, seagrass meadows, and various species that depend on these habitats.

In addition to the environmental impact, the decomposition process of sargassum generates gases such as hydrogen sulfide, methane, and carbon dioxide, associated with unpleasant odors and potential respiratory irritations for residents and visitors in affected areas.

The situation has raised concern among merchants and workers in the area, who requested this Tuesday the intervention of the Ministry of Tourism (Mitur) to clean the coastline and prevent greater impacts on tourism activity.

According to beach merchants, for about three days large amounts of sargassum have been arriving continuously at the shore, covering wide stretches of sand and causing a noticeable drop in visitors in some areas.

“The sargassum is covering the entire shoreline and we need them to send the tractor to clean the beach,” said one of the workers in the area.

Images captured this Tuesday show extensive strips of sargassum covering the Bávaro coast, while tourists and residents walk among the piles that are already producing a bad smell in some spots.

GOVERNMENT

The problem occurs despite the fact that the Dominican government recently received a donation from the Government of Japan aimed precisely at strengthening operational capabilities to combat sargassum on the country’s coasts.

The handover ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Tourism and was led by the Minister of the Presidency, José Ignacio Paliza, together with the Deputy Minister of International Cooperation at Mitur, Carlos Peguero.

As part of the cooperation, Japan delivered six dump trucks, five sweepers, and five tractors to be used in sargassum collection, containment, and management tasks in various tourist and coastal areas of the Dominican Republic.

OPPORTUNITIES

The Vice President of the Puntacana Foundation, Jake Kheel, stated that the Dominican Republic has the opportunity to develop public policies that will transform sargassum into a profitable industry and make the country a regional leader in solutions to this environmental phenomenon.

In a video posted on his Instagram account, Kheel maintained that, after 15 years working with the sargassum problem, the answer doesn’t depend on “miracle solutions,” but rather on creating conditions that attract investment and develop viable business models.

“I finally found the solution to the sargassum crisis,” he said at the beginning of the video, although he later clarified that the answer isn’t a single “fairy-tale” technology, but rather the right combination for each context, such as composting, biogas, bioplastics, and cosmetics. Furthermore, it must be backed by real policies and real investment.

Kheel explained that the German government’s BioWaste Caribbean project recently took him to Munich, Germany, to learn about a different approach. “I attended IFAT, the world’s largest environmental technology trade fair, where cutting-edge technologies for the circular economy are presented,” he said.

He explained that Germany processes 12 million tons of organic waste every year. “They’re not studying it or conducting pilot tests: they’ve been doing it on an industrial scale and profitably for decades.”

The executive noted that in Punta Cana they have tested multiple solutions related to sargassum for more than a decade and that three years ago they began exporting fresh and frozen sargassum to Finland.

“A Finnish biotechnology company called Origin Biocean has transformed Dominican sargassum into cosmetics. Real products, already present in Marimekko textiles and European skincare products. Real patents and real investors. This is what real solutions look like,” he stated.