Seaweed bloom spreads west, threatening more Florida beaches

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (NewsNation)  — Along Florida’s coast, beachgoers are being met with a smelly surprise as large chunks of seaweed are washing ashore, and the problem is expected to get worse before it gets better.

The record-setting 13 million tons of sargassum seaweed patch, which is about the same amount as that observed a month prior, is floating in the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt and it’s spreading west.

When experts put it into perspective, that is like seeing blankets of seaweed stretch from Jacksonville, Florida to Vatican City in Italy.

As prevailing currents and winds push the smelly seaweed westward, its overall mass is expected to “increase substantially,” according to a joint report from the University of South Florida and NASA. Beaching events are also expected to increase in the Gulf of Mexico.

Researchers have said the lack of change is attributed to persistent clouds in the eastern Atlantic. But that’s not expected to last long.

“It’s a train, which is a trailer; this stuff is 5,000 miles long and about 300 miles wide,” said Steven Leatherman, Ph.D., a Florida International University in Miami earth and environment professor. “So this is the largest one we’ve ever seen.”

Scientists have said strong currents and winds are slowly sending the seaweed to places like Key West and they’re waiting for the rest of it to come.

“When it’s offshore, environmental laws do not allow us, even if it’s up against the beach, to take it out of the water. We can only take it where it actually comes ashore,” said Alyson Crean, the City of Key West public information officer.

This specific seaweed is no stranger to coastal communities but the amount is already causing problems.

“We rake our beaches every day. This is always the case because our beaches are small and it’s easy to do, and it keeps the visitors happy,” Crean said.

Peak seaweed blooming season is in June and July

Florida health officials are warning people about a wave of seaweed smelling like rotten eggs, and while the seaweed itself doesn’t pose a threat, tiny sea creatures that live in it can cause skin rashes or blisters.

NewsNation affiliate WFLA contributed to this report.