ROSE HALL, St James — With the dangerous Sargassum threat from Brazil set to reach Jamaica’s shores in nine months, the Tourism Ministry is moving to undertake a joint partnership project aimed at arresting the seaweed before it reaches the island.

“Watch us trying to manage the flow of Sargassum into our shore lines. That is going to be a humongous job,” stated Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett. In nine months time it will be here. Let’s move fast so that we can deal with it ahead of its coming.”

Sargassum Muticum is a large brown seaweed of the class Phaeophyceae and is commonly found in the beach drift near Sargassum beds, where they are also known as Gulfweed, a term that also can mean all seaweed species washed up on shore.

In 2011, and last year, masses of the seaweed had washed up on Barbados’s shores, threatening the vital tourism industry and sea creatures such as turtles.

Addressing the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association’s 58th Annual General Meeting at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa, in St James, on Saturday, Bartlett noted that the Sargassum from Brazil, was “potent and dangerous”.

“This one is not from the Sargassum sea. The weeds from the Sargassum sea is normal organic… which is fairly non-toxic because it hasn’t had the nutrients that have really given rise to what it is,” stated Bartlett.

“This one is from Brazil and it is coming as a result of nutrients and climate change activities and, therefore, this Sargassum is potent and dangerous, because it destroys marine life. It destroys the fish sanctuary and it comes in waves and covers large swathes of beaches and ocean front. And, it has a hugely pungent odor.”

As a means of dealing with the imminent threat, the minister has disclosed that preliminary discussions are being had with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) which utilities a technology to sink the seaweed to the bottom of the sea before it reaches the shore.

“We are having preliminary discussions with a team from MIT that has done some forward technological breakthrough in the area of arresting and sinking the Sargassum to the bottom of the sea, so that it doesn’t reach us at all.

“I think that is a very interesting strategy of putting it off from the Mona Passage so that it doesn’t actually get into the Caribbean sea. And that would be a very exciting and interesting situation,” Bartlett suggested.

“So the technology and science is saying to us to bury it in your sand is not a good idea, because it is composed of chemicals, minerals and all sorts of extraneous matters that’s perhaps damaging and dangerous… “Some are even suggesting the idea of utilising it as a fertiliser. That is not a good idea either.”

Bartlett said the leader of the MIT team is from the Dominican Republic and has been having similar discussions with the Government there. Jamaica is looking forward to a collaboration that will find a formula that will choke off the Sargassum almost from source.

“What they are offering is bigger than Jamaica. It is a whole Caribbean solution,” Bartlett argued.