Dear North Akumal Neighbors and Friends,

Amid all the controversy surrounding the Barrier, I would like to remind everyone of another relatively recent situation that was also very controversial. Remember the security gate? Remember all the robberies that were happening? It was suggested by Terry Richardson, may he rest in peace, that we should do something to mitigate the incidents of theft and insecurity that existed in North Akumal. Hence, Terry spearheaded the installation of the gate and to implement a service to man the gate. Again, this idea was also very controversial. Yet, we had to do something and it was also an experiment. Terry put a huge personal effort, as well as his own money, into the project. I ask all of you to imagine what North Akumal would be if we hadn't done anything. Since the gate was installed and the guard put in place, there has been far far fewer incidents. I am fully aware of the financial and environmental differences between the security gate and the barrier. However, there are many similarities. In both cases, doing nothing in my opinion, wasn't an option. I feel the same way about the Barrier. We had to try something, another experiment to try and mitigate a very real threat to the community, a threat to our health, a threat to our economy and a threat to the pleasure that we all get from living in this wonderful diamond in the rough. At the time, Terry suggested the gate, we didn't know if it would work, we didn't know home much it would impact our community, but we tried and it did work to an acceptable degree! Yes, I donated to the Barrier and I did so with the intention of contributing, again, to a project that could make things better. Will it work, I don't know. However, I am certainly willing to give a chance. If, the Barrier itself fails, if the turtle data starts to show issues, it will be time to reconsider. Yes, there are already some issues, but to be fair, let's give it a fair chance. The barrier has been in for a month. Hopefully the bugs will get worked out. Hopefully it will work as intended and we will be happier, I am sure. If it doesn't, at least we tried. 

There are definitely red flags. Turtle nests are down. The section by Bush Park has failed. The proposal to replace the failed section with an extension that goes past the bay and is only 300 feet offshore from the headlands is very intrusive with no guarantee of success. (For comparison, the main section is 1500+ feet from most properties on Half Moon Bay.)

The barrier's effectiveness stopping sargassum is unclear. I've seen pictures showing sargassum trapped outside, pictures showing sargassum trapped inside, and pictures and videos that are hard to interpret. Without clearing the beach of sargassum that's already there, we cannot know for sure.

If the barrier fails, it will be removed and Mother Nature will forget it in a flash. But if it succeeds, it will have made a great contribution to our community's residents, visitors, and economy. So, I think we have to give it a chance for adjustments and measurements that will show the the outcome with clarity.

My wife and I donated to the barrier even though our house is on the headlands and might be hurt by it.  We pay our Vecinos dues and donated to the government project, the Community Center electric bill, solar lighting, and community clean-ups for the same reason: we love this place and want to help in any way we can. 

I've read comments that 30% supporting the barrier forced it on 70% opposed. That's untrue. 38% of Vecinos members donated and the other 62% aren't all opposed to it - some support it but didn't donate and many aren't engaged and have no opinion. Overall, those who support the barrier probably number at least as many as those who oppose it.

Regardless, a group of our neighbors invested time and money and expertise to try to solve a problem that really needs solving. It may succeed and it may fail, but either way, they deserve our thanks.

As a FULL TIME property owner I have big reservations when it comes to the barrier that has been installed in HMB. I have spoken to many people regarding the barrier in general and have found that there are more people against it than I imagined. The fact that a group of owners  with increased financial capabilities were willing to go above Mexican Law, establish a corporation, and install a sargasso barrier in HMB does not mean that it is a project supported by the community, in fact I can say with certainty the majority of owners in Akumal Norte did not contribute financially to this barrier. The barrier group has never shown us the MIA (Manifesto de Impacto Ambiental) by Semarnat (Secretary of the Environment)which is an evaluation of the environmental impact that needs to be performed prior to any barrier being installed. We haven't seen anything from CONANP (National commission of natural protected areas in Mexico) and they constantly say that they are "in communication with agencies" but this doesn't give them the authorization to proceed with the installation of a barrier. A permit application or a letter from the Marine authority that only authorizes the traffic of motor vessels in HMB doesn't give permission to install a barrier. Where are those permits and MIA'S that tell us that there will not be an environmental impact in HMB? As we have already seen turtle nesting is significantly down, they constantly refer to CEA as an official overseer of the environmental impact but CEA is not a Federal Agency, they are a private group and EPA the Mexican corporation that also helps in the monitoring of the barrier was formed by the barrier project (to me a red flag.) I have asked for official permits multiple times but have not been shown any. As I'm writing this post I see people in the bay dropping markers for the new extension of the barrier to the South which is going to obstruct the view for all the homeowners here on the rocky coast and WILL NOT improve the sargasso situation in HMB. No-one asked our opinion or our views and this is definitely a Federal Protected Zone.....For all of these reasons as a homeowner here in Akumal Norte,  I do not agree with the barrier. 

I'd like to answer a previous post that mentioned our good friend Terry Richardson. Terry was a true original and exceptional member of this community, he and his wife Din made more of an impact in our community than any of us combined. To use the previous post that compared Terry's efforts about the very divisive subject of the Pluma to the barrier in my view is a little offensive. Terry started the Pluma for the benefit of ALL the community and for years took money out of his own pocket (with the help of a few others) and continued to contribute funds even a few months before his passing in order to keep the pluma functioning. The barrier was put in place to help ONLY a select number of homeowners that are on the high impact beach zone in HMB, so then I ask.....why didn't the barrier project take it upon themselves to clean the beach of the sargasso? We know that the new sargasso in the bay is due to #1 Mother Nature and #2 The design and mechanical failure of this barrier. If no thought was put into having a sargassum cleanup budget this project was setup for failure before it started.

In response to Marina Hayman - The barrier people are the ones that have designated a “high impact zone” in HMB we are just using their words…. The tried and true method they have used here in Mexico with barriers is DAILY BEACH CLEANUP. When the beach is not cleaned the sargassum breaks down and you get that nasty sludge. HMB owners should have a budget for DAILY CLEANING. It sounds to me as if you live on HMB, you should start motivating your neighbors to contribute to a beach cleanup fund. 

Ricardo, this forum is a great idea!  Actually, maybe we should all just get together and have a few drinks and talk ;).  

Does everyone like the barrier? NO, but we can’t sit back and do nothing.  We all understand that the barrier close to shore really sucks for your view.  You know that else sucks?… Piles of rotting sargasso, hydrogen sulphide gas, and toxic brown water in what was formerly crystal clear, pristine, and healthy bay.  That affects a lot of owners ocean view as well, and I invite everyone to go snorkel in front of my condo on Half Moon Bay.    Please know that your view isn’t being affected in vain.  I’m not trying to point fingers, but if we’re all just here for me, me, then we’re not going to get anywhere as a community.  We need to stick together and help each other with solutions to the problems we face.  Right now, we need a solution for Half Moon Bay.  Is it perfect? No, but it needs to be given time a chance.  

The last several years, many properties have left the sargasso on the beach untouched, for whatever reason… financial, lack of effort, thinking it’ll make more beach or save beach from erosion (which isn’t working).  Bottom line… the massive amount of sargasso coming in to Half Moon Bay over the last 8 years has generated an environmental disaster, leaching hydrogen sulfide gas into the air and toxins including arsenic into the waters of the bay as it rots.  

There seem to be some of misconceptions about the professionalism and research that’s been done on this project.  The team working on this have spent 6 years consulting with qualified marine environment specialists, the government agency for marine protection CONAMP and SEMARNAT, marine engineers, and sargassum mitigation specialists. They have also monitored the effects of many of the other sargassum barriers that have been installed along our coast.  All professional and qualified entities consulted with have concluded that this is the best solution available for Half Moon Bay at this time.  

For those of you who don’t know me, Hi!  My name is Scott Brown.  I’m a life-long local of Akumal… an Akumalic, if you will.  And by life-long, I’ve lived here for 38 years now, and I’m one of 4 generations of my family who have lived here in Akumal.  My wife, Marieke and I, own a few properties along Half Moon Bay (and honestly, even if we didn’t and even if we hadn’t paid our full fair share to this barrier project, we would still support this project, because it’s something that needs to be done.  Half Moon Bay was my back yard growing up.  I’ve snorkeled it, surfed it, kayaked it, swam it, paddle boarded it and watched that bay walked that beach and sat on that beach in the daytime and at night more times I could possibly ever count.  

I volunteer for the HMB Barrier Project.  I fly my drone 5 to 6 days a week in my free time, sometimes several times a day and I’ve been monitoring this project since May 1st (Day 1).  I’d like to share some of my observations.  

Something that I feel is VERY important that people need to realize about this barrier project... this is something that I’ve come to learn having flown my drone almost daily and I’m at almost 100 flights since May 1st.  It’s really easy to quantify how much sargasso gets in to Half Moon Bay.  It’s almost impossible to quantify how much does not get in to Half Moon Bay due to the barrier (though I see some people like to make claims).  EVERYONE can easily see the sargasso that’s still getting the bay.  What everyone CAN’T see is all of the sargasso that is NOT getting into the bay.   The barrier is too far out to really see the movement of sargasso outside of the barrier with the naked eye.   So, like me, you have to fly a drone up to really get a good idea of what’s going on out there and where the stuff on the surface is moving.  But I’ve found over time that even if you do fly a drone for a few minutes, you’re really only seeing/capturing a moment in time.  It’s really hard to gauge the movement of the sargasso without spending and recording a LOT of time from up above (so I encourage others to do exactly that).  One of the things I’ve started doing over the last few weeks is taking the drone to a certain position, filming stationary for 20 -30 minutes, and speeding up the footage to create a Timelapse video.  This allows us to more accurately see how and where the sargasso is moving.  We’ll be putting more of this up on the HMB Barrier Project website.  

Sometimes we get a north wind and it slowly pushes sargasso floating close to shore out toward the barrier.  Sometimes it makes it to the barrier and the barrier “holds” it.  This is not a normal occurrence.  It’s doesn’t go out to sea.  Our north winds, even in the winter months, are few and far between.  Our recent north winds are not normal for summertime.  If wind pushing sargasso out of Half Moon Bay were a regular thing, we wouldn’t be talking about this, because sargasso on Half Moon Bay wouldn’t be an issue, it would all be blown out to sea!  But I’m seeing on social media and in local Whatsapp groups every time the wind pushes the sargasso out to the barrier, a few people get up in arms about how “the barrier isn’t working”, “it’s trapping the sargasso”, “we’re impeding nature” and other such nonsense.  This has happened a few hours of literally 5 or 6 days since the start of the barrier.  This is not the norm.  Then, as soon as the wind turns back to its normal direction, coming from the east/southeast, it pushes the sargasso right back into Half Moon Bay.  I’ve watched it for years.  

Some parts of the barrier are experiencing difficulties.  No one said it was not going to be without challenges.  The curve in the barrier that connected to the south headland took a beating when the waves picked up.  Aside from part of the barrier becoming disconnected, a small portion was damaged and we observed from the air that where the waves break, they were pushing sargasso over the barrier.  The barrier project is making adjustments and modifications.  It’s going to extend somewhat south.  Not 600 meters south (that’s almost the distance to Akumal Bay), but they’re looking at extending it at 200 meters and it will sit just outside the breakers, for the most part.  From our observations (and from my drone flights), the part of the barrier outside the breakers (white caps), for the most part, does retain and deflect the sargasso that comes in.  

I feel like this needs to be said, because I hear from a lot of people who assume the barrier net goes all the way down to the sea floor.  It’s doesn’t.  The barrier net extends 1 meter down below the surface and about 2 feet above the surface.  That 1 meter below the surfaces, for the most part, sits in 30 feet of water (maybe a little less in some parts).  That’s a big space from the sea floor to the surface.  That’s a lot of space for wildlife to pass through.  The anchor lines are 25 meters/80feet apart.  That’s a lot of space to move through.  Pick a calm day (make sure it’s a calm day), and paddle or swim out there and check it out for yourselves.  

Boats in Half Moon Bay.  I keep seeing comments or posts about boats being a new thing in Half Moon Bay.  Before 2021, for those who haven’t been here in Akumal that long, there was a small dive shop next to La Buena Vida for almost 20 years.  I think Jamie opened Akumal Dive Adventures in 2001 or 2002.  He had 2 boats operating commercially in Half Moon Bay for years.  It’s a shallow bay and it’s not ideal for boats, but they got their permits and they made it work.  

Regarding the nesting turtles on Half Moon Bay… I salute all of the turtle volunteers.  I honestly don’t think the sargasso barrier is deterring them, as barriers on other beaches all along the coast don’t deter the turtles there.  .  Again, there’s a lot of space for the turtles to move through it, and there’s been a sargasso barrier on Akumal Bay for years along with highly active boat traffic and it’s not scaring them away.  Today, there’s a LOT more sargasso left on Half Moon Bay on a day to day basis than is left on the main parts of the beaches of South Akumal, Jade Bay (Playa Tortugas) and the main part of Akumal Bay.  When the nesting season started, there was a LOT more sargasso on Half Moon Bay than the other bays.  I’m a photographer.  I have plenty of photos and video.  I also work in vacation rentals.  I’m out there almost daily documenting the condition of our beaches.  2 to 4+ foot piles of rotting sargasso having been left along a lot of Half Moon Bay versus minimal recent sargasso pile-up on the other beaches, most of which is cleaned regularly.  I have plenty of photos and video for those who would like to see.  

I can go on and on… As an owner on Half Moon Bay and a life-long resident of Akumal, the Barrier Project on Half Moon Bay needs to be given a chance.  It needs time for ample observation and adjustments before deciding on its ultimate success/failure.  A lot of people are working their asses off for no pay to make sure this project works, for the betterment of the community, and they don’t deserve the flack they’re getting for it.  In the meantime, I encourage anyone and everyone who thinks that they have a better solution, to research it, tell people about it, fundraise for it, and make it happen!  

(Edited by moderator to increase font size for readability, 7/5/2023)