Latest news with #UniversityofSouthFlorida
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
A mystery wave of seaweed is causing a stink in the Caribbean
A record amount of sargassum seaweed amassed across the Caribbean and surrounding areas in May, with more expected this month, according to a recent report. The brown algae is blanketing shorelines from Puerto Rico to Guyana, disrupting tourism, killing wildlife, and emitting toxic gases. One school in Martinique was temporarily closed due to the fumes. The volume of seaweed—38 million metric tons—is the largest quantity observed in the Caribbean Sea, the western and eastern Atlantic, and the Gulf of Mexico since scientists began monitoring the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt in 2011. Brian Barnes, an assistant research professor at the University of South Florida and contributor to the report published by the university's Optical Oceanography Lab, confirmed the findings on Monday. The previous record was set in June 2022, with approximately 22 million metric tons. 'The peaks just seem to keep getting bigger and bigger year after year,' he said. But scientists don't know why yet. 'It's the million-dollar question,' he said. 'I don't have a supremely satisfying answer.' Three different types of sargassum exist in the Caribbean and nearby areas, reproducing asexually as they remain afloat thanks to tiny air sacs. They thrive in different ways depending on sunlight, nutrients and water temperature, factors that scientists are currently studying, Barnes said. Experts also have said that agricultural runoff, warming waters and changes in wind, current and rain could have an effect. While large clumps of algae in the open ocean are what Barnes called a 'healthy, happy ecosystem' for creatures ranging from tiny shrimp to endangered sea turtles, sargassum near or on shore can wreak havoc. It can block sunlight that coral reefs need to survive, and if the algae sinks, it can smother reefs and sea grasses. Once it reaches shore, the creatures living in the algae die or are picked off by birds, Barnes said. Huge piles of stinky seaweed also are a headache for the Caribbean, where tourism often generates big money for small islands. 'It is a challenge, but it's certainly not affecting every single inch of the Caribbean,' said Frank Comito, special adviser to the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association. In the popular tourist spot of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, officials have invested in barriers to prevent sargassum from reaching the shore, he said. In the Dutch Caribbean territory of St. Maarten, crews with backhoes were dispatched in late May as part of an emergency clean-up after residents complained of strong smells of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, which can affect a person's respiratory system. 'The smell is quite terrible,' Barnes said. Meanwhile, in the French Caribbean, officials expect to soon use storage barges and an upgraded special vessel that can collect several tons of seaweed a day. The sargassum 'disfigures our coasts, prevents swimming and makes life impossible for local residents,' French Prime Minister François Bayrou recently told reporters. But Comito said such vessels are 'massively expensive' and not a popular option, noting that another option — using heavy equipment —- is labor-intensive. 'You have to be careful because there could be sea turtle eggs affected,' he said. 'It's not like you can go in there and massively rake and scrape the whole thing.' Some Caribbean islands struggle financially, so most of the cleanup is done by hotels, with some offering guests refunds or a free shuttle to unaffected beaches. Every year, the amount of sargassum expands in late spring, peaks around summer and starts to decline in the late fall or early winter, Barnes said. The new record set is hardly stationary — experts said they expect even more sargassum for June.
9 hours ago
- Science
Scientists say a record amount of seaweed hit the Caribbean and nearby areas in May
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- A record amount of sargassum piled up across the Caribbean and nearby areas in May, and more is expected this month, according to a new report. The brown prickly algae is suffocating shorelines from Puerto Rico to Guyana and beyond, disrupting tourism, killing wildlife and even releasing toxic gases that forced one school in the French Caribbean island of Martinique to temporarily close. The amount — 38 million metric tons — is the biggest quantity of algae observed across the Caribbean Sea, the western and eastern Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico since scientists began studying the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt in 2011, said Brian Barnes, an assistant research professor at the University of South Florida who worked on the report published on Monday by the University of South Florida's Optical Oceanography Lab. The previous record was set in June 2022, with some 22 million metric tons. 'The peaks just seem to keep getting bigger and bigger year after year,' he said. But scientists don't know why yet. 'It's the million-dollar question,' he said. 'I don't have a supremely satisfying answer.' Three different types of sargassum exist in the Caribbean and nearby areas, reproducing asexually as they remain afloat thanks to tiny air sacs. They thrive in different ways depending on sunlight, nutrients and water temperature, factors that scientists are currently studying, Barnes said. Experts also have said that agricultural runoff, warming waters and changes in wind, current and rain could have an effect. While large clumps of algae in the open ocean are what Barnes called a 'healthy, happy ecosystem' for creatures ranging from tiny shrimp to endangered sea turtles, sargassum near or on shore can wreak havoc. It can block sunlight that coral reefs need to survive, and if the algae sinks, it can smother reefs and sea grasses. Once it reaches shore, the creatures living in the algae die or are picked off by birds, Barnes said. Huge piles of stinky seaweed also are a headache for the Caribbean, where tourism often generates big money for small islands. 'It is a challenge, but it's certainly not affecting every single inch of the Caribbean,' said Frank Comito, special adviser to the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association. In the popular tourist spot of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, officials have invested in barriers to prevent sargassum from reaching the shore, he said. In the Dutch Caribbean territory of St. Maarten, crews with backhoes were dispatched in late May as part of an emergency clean-up after residents complained of strong smells of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, which can affect a person's respiratory system. 'The smell is quite terrible,' Barnes said. Meanwhile, in the French Caribbean, officials expect to soon use storage barges and an upgraded special vessel that can collect several tons of seaweed a day. The sargassum 'disfigures our coasts, prevents swimming and makes life impossible for local residents,' French Prime Minister François Bayrou recently told reporters. But Comito said such vessels are 'massively expensive' and not a popular option, noting that another option — using heavy equipment —- is labor-intensive. 'You have to be careful because there could be sea turtle eggs affected,' he said. 'It's not like you can go in there and massively rake and scrape the whole thing.' Some Caribbean islands struggle financially, so most of the cleanup is done by hotels, with some offering guests refunds or a free shuttle to unaffected beaches. Every year, the amount of sargassum expands in late spring, peaks around summer and starts to decline in the late fall or early winter, Barnes said. The new record set is hardly stationary — experts said they expect even more sargassum for June.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Son of a PGA Tour winner, Canadian teen and investment banker qualify for RBC Canadian Open
Just a couple weeks after making his Korn Ferry Tour debut, Cristian DiMarco is moving on up to the big time. The 29-year-old son of three-time PGA Tour winner and former U.S. Ryder Cupper Chris DiMarco, carded five birdies and two bogeys and shot 3-under 68 at The Pulpit Club on Sunday to take medalist honors at the RBC Canadian Open qualifier. In doing so, he earned one of four open spots into the field of 156 and secured his first start at a PGA Tour event. [It was held on Sunday rather than Monday to make way for U.S. Open Final Qualifying.] Advertisement DiMarco, who played his college golf at University of South Florida and remains a Tampa resident, previously played on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica in 2019 and 2022, making just one cut each year, and PGA Tour Canada in 2023, where he also managed to make just one cut in five starts. But he recently Monday qualified for the KFT's AdventHealth Championship and made the cut, finishing T-45. A southpaw who putts right-handed, DiMarco earned a spot in the field at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (North Course) in Caledon, Ontario. DiMarco's father, 56, who lost to Tiger Woods in a playoff at the 2005 Masters and to Vijay Singh at the 2004 PGA Championship, played in the RBC Canadian Open 17 times, including recording a T-9 in 1998. Yi Cao and Josh Goldenberg both made five birdies and three bogeys and tied for second at 2-under 69. Like DiMarco, Goldenberg had never made a start even in a KFT event and started a job in March at investment bank Goldman Sachs. But with the qualifier being held on Sunday, he decided to give it a go. 'A dream come true,' he told Moday Q Info's Ryan French. Eighteen-year-old Canadian amateur Matthew Javier, a Team Canada NextGen member, overcame a double bogey to shoot 70 and won a two-for-one playoff for the final spot over Toronto's Mark Hoffman. Advertisement The RBC Canadian Open begins on Thursday. Robert MacIntyre is the defending champion. This article originally appeared on Golfweek: RBC Canadian Open 2025: Qualifying results, scores, highlights
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Son of a PGA Tour winner, Canadian teen and investment banker qualify for RBC Canadian Open
Just a couple weeks after making his Korn Ferry Tour debut, Cristian DiMarco is moving on up to the big time. The 29-year-old son of three-time PGA Tour winner and former U.S. Ryder Cupper Chris DiMarco, carded five birdies and two bogeys and shot 3-under 68 at The Pulpit Club on Sunday to take medalist honors at the RBC Canadian Open qualifier. In doing so, he earned one of four open spots into the field of 156 and secured his first start at a PGA Tour event. [It was held on Sunday rather than Monday to make way for U.S. Open Final Qualifying.] Advertisement DiMarco, who played his college golf at University of South Florida and remains a Tampa resident, previously played on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica in 2019 and 2022, making just one cut each year, and PGA Tour Canada in 2023, where he also managed to make just one cut in five starts. But he recently Monday qualified for the KFT's AdventHealth Championship and made the cut, finishing T-45. A southpaw who putts right-handed, DiMarco earned a spot in the field at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (North Course) in Caledon, Ontario. DiMarco's father, 56, who lost to Tiger Woods in a playoff at the 2005 Masters and to Vijay Singh at the 2004 PGA Championship, played in the RBC Canadian Open 17 times, including recording a T-9 in 1998. Yi Cao and Josh Goldenberg both made five birdies and three bogeys and tied for second at 2-under 69. Like DiMarco, Goldenberg had never made a start even in a KFT event and started a job in March at investment bank Goldman Sachs. But with the qualifier being held on Sunday, he decided to give it a go. 'A dream come true,' he told Moday Q Info's Ryan French. Eighteen-year-old Canadian amateur Matthew Javier, a Team Canada NextGen member, overcame a double bogey to shoot 70 and won a two-for-one playoff for the final spot over Toronto's Mark Hoffman. Advertisement The RBC Canadian Open begins on Thursday. Robert MacIntyre is the defending champion. This article originally appeared on Golfweek: RBC Canadian Open 2025: Qualifying results, scores, highlights
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Son of a PGA Tour winner, Canadian teen and investment banker qualify for RBC Canadian Open
Son of a PGA Tour winner, Canadian teen and investment banker qualify for RBC Canadian Open Just a couple weeks after making his Korn Ferry Tour debut, Cristian DiMarco is moving on up to the big time. The 29-year-old son of three-time PGA Tour winner and former U.S. Ryder Cupper Chris DiMarco, carded five birdies and two bogeys and shot 3-under 68 at The Pulpit Club on Sunday to take medalist honors at the RBC Canadian Open qualifier. In doing so, he earned one of four open spots into the field of 156 and secured his first start at a PGA Tour event. [It was held on Sunday rather than Monday to make way for U.S. Open Final Qualifying.] DiMarco, who played his college golf at University of South Florida and remains a Tampa resident, previously played on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica in 2019 and 2022, making just one cut each year, and PGA Tour Canada in 2023, where he also managed to make just one cut in five starts. But he recently Monday qualified for the KFT's AdventHealth Championship and made the cut, finishing T-45. A southpaw who putts right-handed, DiMarco earned a spot in the field at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (North Course) in Caledon, Ontario. DiMarco's father, 56, who lost to Tiger Woods in a playoff at the 2005 Masters and to Vijay Singh at the 2004 PGA Championship, played in the RBC Canadian Open 17 times, including recording a T-9 in 1998. Yi Cao and Josh Goldenberg both made five birdies and three bogeys and tied for second at 2-under 69. Like DiMarco, Goldenberg had never made a start even in a KFT event and started a job in March at investment bank Goldman Sachs. But with the qualifier being held on Sunday, he decided to give it a go. 'A dream come true,' he told Moday Q Info's Ryan French. Eighteen-year-old Canadian amateur Matthew Javier, a Team Canada NextGen member, overcame a double bogey to shoot 70 and won a two-for-one playoff for the final spot over Toronto's Mark Hoffman. The RBC Canadian Open begins on Thursday. Robert MacIntyre is the defending champion.
