San Pedro Removes 75 Tonnes of Sargassum, But Says There’s Still More

San Pedro Town Council reported removing 75 tonnes of sargassum from local beaches this week in preparation for Easter, but heavy accumulations continue to wash ashore across the country. Large mats were reported on both Placencia’s and Hopkins’ coastlines on Thursday, while Caye Caulker saw arrivals as early as Wednesday.

“We still have heavy accumulations, and we welcome all support to continue getting it out the water,” the council said.

The surge comes as San Pedro has been quietly developing one of the country’s most ambitious responses to the annual sargassum crisis. Biodiversity scientist Valentine Rosdao has been advising the Town Council on a beach restoration programme backed by World Bank financing and partnerships with several universities.

Speaking to News Five, Rosado explained that the team discovered last year that sargassum removal was costing beaches more than many realised. “40% of every load of sargassum leaving the beach is all sand,” he said, meaning conventional cleanup methods were stripping beaches of their own sand.

The programme now composites sargassum at sites near the beach, allowing it to decompose while retaining the sand within it. “In two months, it already begins to clear up, and we begin to see that white sand all over again,” Rosado said.