Dominican Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez assured that the sargassum plague requires a cooperative and collective solution, as part of his speech at the Wider Caribbean-EU Regional Conference on Sargassum: Turning Sargassum into an Opportunity.

Alvarez reiterated his country’s willingness to lead the initiative for the creation of a common fund, and expressed Santo Domingo’s support for the formation of a Regional Working Group to generate and implement a comprehensive management plan.

Regarding the collection of algae in particular, the Minister of the Environment Miguel Ceara stated that one of the pending issues is to determine how to finance the collection.

At the event, Rosa Rodriguez, a researcher from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, presented figures on the cost of cleaning up sargassum on her nation’s beaches, and explained that the sweeping of one kilometer can cost from 800,000 to 1.5 million dollars a year.

The conference, held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Convention Center, was attended by representatives of the 35 countries of the Greater Caribbean and the diplomatic corps in the Dominican Republic.

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