Sargassum seaweed is coming back to South Florida shores with some of it already popping up at places like Fort Lauderdale Beach.
A big blob of seaweed is swirling out at sea and scientists are predicting it'll have a major impact on Florida beaches this year.
Brian Barnes, an assistant professor at the University of South Florida, conducts research on sargassum seaweed blooms and said this year's blob is only getting bigger.
"We’ve observed over the last several months that the bloom is getting bigger. It’s likely be as big as or if not bigger than the bloom that we saw last year," Barnes said.
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The seaweed has gained material early this year with changes in ocean currents, and is estimated to be about 5,500 miles long. It usually impacts the Florida Keys before moving up the state's East Coast.
The summer is usually the height of the seaweed season but this year it appears to be earlier.
Not only is the seaweed an eyesore that annoys beachgoers and spring breakers, but the increased presence of the soggy mess can impact wildlife.
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And as it decomposes in the hot sun, the smell can also potentially trigger respiratory problems for those with asthma.
Barnes said the trend of more seaweed has been growing since 2011.
"Just the fact that there’s so much of it out there and it’s early in the cycle and we’re already seeing very big amounts relative to what we’ve seen in previous years, since there’s so much of it, the likelihood that there will be a beaching event that causes impacts just increases," Barnes said.
Mark Almy with the City of Fort Lauderdale said they've already had crews scooping up the slimy stuff in the past couple weeks.
"We have about 500 yards of seaweed we’ve taken off the beach so far as last year about this time it was 200," Almy said.
Most cities usually remove the stinky mess or dig it back into the sand, but Fort Lauderdale uses composting, bringing the mounds to a facility in Snyder Park.
"It's a trailer that is pulled behind a big tractor and it’s pulled with a conveyor on it and it grabs the seaweed and puts it in a hopper and then it’s shipped into a truck and brought down here to compost," Almy said.
It's environmentally friendly as the seaweed turns into dirt. It also saves the city a lot of cash.
"We don’t have any landfill space taking up and we don’t have to pay dumping fees so we save about $300,000 to $350,000 a year in just trucking fees," Almy said.
