The sargassum season continues

Slicks here, slicks there, Sargasso continues to wash up on the shores of Saint-Barthélemy. Fortunately, the quantities are much smaller than in June. Nevertheless, the pace of arrivals of brown seaweed does not seem to be slowing down.
In the last few days, after having partially disappeared (or sunk) due to the effects of high swell linked to the passage of Hurricane Erin more than 160 kilometers from the island, sargassum has gradually returned to the Cayes cove. The same applies to Grand Fond, where a large part of the beach has been covered with stranded seaweed for several days.
The sites affected remain the same, time and again. Another example is Grands Galets (Shell Beach), which was invaded on the eve of the start of the new school year. A foul-smelling presence that indisposed staff for several days.
In its latest bulletin on sargassum stranding, Météo France highlights the fact that rafts are still circulating near the coasts of Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy. However, over the next fortnight, arrivals are expected to be "slightly more spaced out". He added, however, that "there are reserves for the future".
During his Facebook live broadcast on August 25, the President of the Collectivité territoriale, Xavier Lédée, declared that he was working on the implementation of systems to combat the stranding of brown algae. In particular, he mentioned the purchase of nets and deflectors costing between 200 and 300,000 euros each. "We're talking about a contract worth well over a million euros, plus the maintenance and upkeep of these nets", he declared.
In the meantime, beach collection will continue to be the preferred method. At a cost to the local authority of over three million euros this season (compared with the usual figure of around 1.6). And the impact on beach erosion will be considerable.