Analyst Wants – By Kisean Joseph
Analyst Wants Regional Approach
Antigua and Barbuda does not generate enough sargassum seaweed on its own to make large-scale repurposing viable and should instead pursue a joint solution with its OECS neighbours, according to analyst Stafford Lewis.
Speaking on Observer Radio’s Big Issues programme, Lewis said countries with Atlantic-facing coastlines across the Caribbean are increasingly affected by seasonal sargassum influxes, and that some countries have found productive uses for the material once they have enough of it.
“I’ve done some research and found that in Mexico, where they can actually harness large quantities, hundreds of thousands of tons of the weed, that they’re repurposing it for making bricks and other types of building materials – that (has) proven to be very effective,” Lewis said.
He said Antigua’s small size limits what can realistically be done locally.
“In our small island, what I think we would have to do is use the connection within the OECS, where we probably have to work with St Kitts, Nevis, Montserrat and so on, and Dominica and so on, to be able to get enough of this weed to go to a central location to be able to repurpose it for whatever the research would allow us to do,” he said.
Lewis said small island states individually lack the resources to fund the research needed to safely and effectively repurpose the seaweed, making regional cooperation essential.
“I think, you know, within these small island development states, we don’t have enough resources to be able to do it on our own,” he said. “So it has to be a corporate effort to be able to do the research and do the repurpose.”
He added that the material’s chemical properties complicate matters further, noting that sargassum releases methane gas as it decays and carries a strong odour, and that prolonged decomposition can change the properties relevant to any proposed reuse.
