Trinidad and Tobago can now boast of owning equipment specifically modified to remove sargassum seaweed from affected coastlines.
A collaborative effort among the Embassy of Japan, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government has brought to fruition the purchase of specialised equipment that will allow for the easy clean-up of affected beaches.
On Tuesday, the Ambassador of Japan to Trinidad and Tobago officially handed over the keys to two pieces of equipment to the Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government, with more machinery expected to arrive in the coming months.
Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme in Trinidad and Tobago, Ugo Blanco, expressed his organisation’s pleasure at being a part of what he called an “all hands on deck” initiative.
“It’s a disaster, it’s a disaster, and it’s impacting many countries in the region. Thanks to the support of the Government of Japan, five countries in the region are benefiting from this collaboration: St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Barbados, and we are very lucky also to have this collaboration here in Trinidad and Tobago. Ambassador Umezawa, thank you very much to you and the people of Japan for this vision and this support on something that is strategic. Sargassum is not new. I’m not an expert, and we have experts around the table, but since 2011 we’ve seen the influx of Sargassum becoming a real problem.”
Ambassador of Japan to Trinidad and Tobago, Dr Akima Umezawa, said he witnessed firsthand how sargassum has affected lives and livelihoods in coastal communities, which prompted him to vow to collaborate with the people of Trinidad and Tobago to restore affected coastlines.
The Ambassador has facilitated the conversation to convert collected seaweed using emerging, innovative Japanese technology, into useful products — one of which will accelerate the decomposition of sargassum.
“Another Japanese company, its named the WEF Corporation, successfully completed the manufacturing process of fertilisation through the reactive oxygen treatment of sargassum. Usually, sargassum needs three to four years to decompose and to be fertilised in a natural environment. But this company developed the technology of fertilisation within only eight days. So in almost a week, sargassum changed into fertiliser.”
Minister of Rural Development and Local Government, Khadijah Ameen, said her Ministry is committed to ensuring the equipment is utilised effectively, and to seeing the sociological and economic improvement of the lives of affected communities.
“With the first phase of equipment being registered and ready for deployment, we must move together stronger, more coordinated in this response to sargassum. Sargassum must not be seen just as an occasional time of the year when we can’t go to the beach on the East Coast, and eventually we’ll just wait for it to go away. Those are valuable months and days in terms of productivity, in terms of tourism, in terms of contributing to that community’s local economy, but the national economy as well.”
The two pieces of equipment will be tested in Speyside, Tobago, and Guayaguayare in the coming weeks.
Facilitated through the UNDP, Trinidad and Tobago will benefit from an allocation of US$2 million for equipment. Other pieces of equipment are expected by February 2026. They include floating booms and barriers, sargassum harvester vessels and barges for offshore collection and removal, and tractors and dump trucks for onshore removal.