Author: Kalesh Loakman, LLM
July 16, 2024
A Growing Crisis
Governments, experts and activists from all reaches of the globe gathered on the tiny island-nation of Antigua and Barbuda from May 27, 2024 to May 30, 2024 for the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (“SIDS”). At this conference, leaders pivotally discussed the creation of pathways for sustainable development and ensuring that SIDS are not caught at the frontline of the battlefield that is the climate crisis. As plans were made to pave a way forward, the islands of the Caribbean continue to grapple with an unpleasant and continually growing situation- sargassum seaweed.
Sargassum as a Variable in the Climate Crisis Equation
It must be clarified at the outset that the presence of sargassum seaweed is not in itself a human rights violation. However, marked sargassum bloom in the Caribbean as a result of climate change has manifested itself into an exemplification of the effects of climate change on the Caribbean region. The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) has attributed the growing invasion of these floating masses to the warming of the ocean which has been brought about by climate change. The region has been reportedly affected by this natural phenomenon since 2011 and will continue to grow as the effects of climate change continue to unravel. This phenomenon is a product of one of the identified "slow onset events”, as first coined and introduced by the Cancun Agreement at COP 16, and refers to the risks and impacts associated with, among other things, increasing temperature.
This must be understood in tandem with what aspects within these island-nations are most affected. Generally, the Caribbean region is heavily dependent on tourism and resources from the coastline-adjacent marine ecosystem for its economic sustenance. In the tourism sector as well as the daily life of those in the Caribbean, “sargassum” is growing to be a more common part of the vocabulary, and has literally and metaphorically grown to become part of the new normal in the region. As invasive as sargassum may be in the region, it is not entirely bad nor is it entirely good. As the seaweed mass occupies more of the sea and consequently the consequently the coastlines in the region, concern has grown regarding the potential impact that this seemingly harmless phenomenon will have on the life and livelihoods of those who live in the islands which dot the region, those the Central America and even those in North America.
On the other hand, while at sea, floating sargassum masses offer a safe haven for marine species, serving as a source of food, habitat and protection. As the floating mass draws nearer to shore, the benefits wear off; exposing the potential detrimental effects of this biomass. UNEP, in analysing the effect of sargassum presence both on land and in sea, has determined that sargassum invasion can result in “erosion, loss of habitats, and damage to tourism, fisheries, and other coastal economies.” It was further stated that, “The overgrowth of sargassum can also cause hypoxia, or oxygen depletion, in the water, which can lead to the death of marine life and further harm the ecosystem.” Sargassum begins to decompose within forty-eight hours after washing ashore. The pungent smell which sargassum releases is caused by release of potentially toxic gases such as hydrogen sulphide gas and ammonia and can cause mild to serious respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses, as well as skin irritation.
Drawing a Nexus with Human Rights in the Region
A simple cost-benefit analysis discloses that sargassum costs the region more as compared to the benefits it has the potential to confer. The potential threat on human life and livelihood cannot be ignored as it necessarily activates a human rights discourse. On its face, this natural phenomenon shows how the right to a healthy environment both of the people who call the region home is being affected. Moreover, because of the causal nexus or link between sargassum blooms and climate-induced events, it demonstrates how climate change continues to occupy the position of being one of the greatest threats to human rights of our generation. Notably, this point has been iterated at the last Climate Conference and sovereign nations globally acknowledged a healthy environment as a human right. However, human rights do not exist in isolation from each other, but rather exist interdependently and indivisibly. This central idea is exemplified here.
In addition to the concern of the overwhelming presence and accumulation of sargassum in the region and its impact on the right to a healthy environment, sargassum impacts marine ecosystems and natural sea resources. Fishes, shellfish and reef sustaining ecosystems are threatened by seaweed accumulation. This poses a threat to the region’s people’s right to food given the region’s notable reliance on the Caribbean Sea as a source of sustenance. As enunciated in article 25 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) and given binding force by way of article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), adequate food is a prerequisite to achieving an adequate standard of living. Further, the chemical release which occurs when decomposing sargassum lingers on beaches and coastal fringes potentially undermines the right to health of those who call the region home. In article 25 of the UDHR, health together with adequate food are among the non-negotiable prerequisites for an adequate standard of living. The obligation placed on states to ensure that its people are able to achieve the highest attainable standard of health, which was iterated in article 12 ICESCR cannot be fulfilled if states are unable to effectively address and curtail the gradually intensifying sargassum problem.
A Challenge With the Potential to Spark Innovation
The region is new to exploring ideas on how to deal with this impending crisis. A glimmer of hope lies in reaping the benefits both literally and metaphorically from an already uncontrollable presence of sargassum seaweed in the region. Options on utilizing the pervasive sargassum seaweed as a source of energy and biofuel are being explored. In an effort to identify solutions among the challenges sargassum has posed in the region, the Government of Grenada will host a conference in September 2024, with the financial and technical assistance of the European Union, to develop sustainable solutions for the management of sargassum deposits along the coastal fringes of the island-nations. With the right transfer of technical knowhow and capacity building, sargassum stands to be a promising source of biofuel and boost to the region’s agricultural sector. In the process, these initiatives will protect existing marine ecosystems which are threatened by the overwhelming presence of sargassum in the region.
Glossary
Ammonia: A gas made of nitrogen and hydrogen. It has a strong odor and can irritate the skin, eyes, nose, throat, and lungs.
Biofuel: A fuel derived from biomass, which can be plant or algae material, animal waste, or other organic matter. It's considered a renewable energy source, unlike fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, and natural gas.
Biomass: The weight or total quantity of living organisms of one animal or plant species (species biomass) or of all the species in a community (community biomass), commonly referred to as a habitat.
Climate change: long-term shifts in global temperatures and weather patterns.
Detrimental: Harmful or damaging.
Ecosystem: the complex of a community of organisms and its environment functioning as a unit.
Enunciate: To announce or proclaim.
Exemplify (Exemplification): To show or illustrate by example.
Hydrogen sulphide (sulfide) gas: A colorless, flammable, and poisonous gas that smells like rotten eggs at low concentrations. It's also known as sewer gas, swamp gas, stink damp, and sour damp.
Island-nation: a country that is made up entirely of one or more islands.
Iterate: To say or do again or again and again.
Nexus: A connection or link.
Pungent: Causing a sharp or irritating sensation.
Sargassum: a type of large brown seaweed that floats in island-like masses but never attaches itself to the seafloor.
Sovereign: The ultimate overseer, or authority, in the decision-making process of the state and in the maintenance of order.
Water hypoxia: A condition in which water has low levels of dissolved oxygen, making it difficult for fish and other aquatic life to survive.
UN Sources
United Nations Meetings and Press Releases, “Prime Minister Calls for New Era of Fervent, Persistent Progress towards Resilient Future, as Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States Opens” , DEV/2460, 27 May 2024: https://press.un.org/en/2024/dev3460.doc.htm
United Nations Environmental Program, “Second Sargassum Webinar: The Science of Sargassum”. 21 July 2020: https://www.unep.org/cep/fr/node/273?%2Ffr%2Fnode%2F273=&%2Fevents%2Fworkshop%2Fsecond-sargassum-webinar-science-sargassum=#:~:text=The%20unprecedented%20recent%20invasion%20of,climate%20change%2C%20discharge%20of%20nutrients
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), “Slow onset event”. Technical paper, UN Doc. FCCC/TP/2012/7, 26 November 2012: https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2012/tp/07.pdf
United Nations Environmental Programme, Sargassum White Paper Turning the Crisis Into Opportunity, 2021: https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/36244/SGWP21.pdf?sequence%E2%80%A6
United Nations Environmental Programme, Blue Resilience: The Approaches to the Sargassum Crisis in the Caribbean, 27 April 2023: https://www.unep.org/cep/es/node/481?%2Fnews%2Fblogpost%2Fblue-resilience-approaches-sargassum-crisis-caribbean=
United Nations Environmental Programme, Climate Change and Human Rights, December 2015: https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/9530/-Climate_Change_and_Human_Rightshuman-rights-climate-change.pdf.pdf?sequence=2&%3BisAllowed=
United States Environmental Protection Agency, Sargassum Inundation Events (SEIs): Impacts on Human Health: https://www.epa.gov/habs/sargassum-inundation-events-sies-impacts-human-health
United Nations Environmental Programme, In historic move, UN declares healthy environment a human right, 28 July 2022: https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/historic-move-un-declares-healthy-environment-human-right
News Reports
Inside Climate News, “After 13 Years, No End in Sight for Caribbean Sargassum Invasion”. 18 April 2024: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/18042024/caribbean-sargassum-invasion/#:~:text=Such%20crises%20were%20some%20of,the%20spring%20and%20summer%20months
Now Grenada, Grenada to Host Sargassum Conference. 28 May 2024: https://nowgrenada.com/2024/05/grenada-to-host-sargassum-conference/
Loop, Grenada to Host Sargassum Conference. 28 May 2024: https://caribbean.loopnews.com/content/grenada-host-sargassum-conference
Research Articles
Elvira Hernandez, Gladstone Taylor and Deandre Williamson, Sargassum, a common Caribbean climate problem. Caribbean Accelerator, 1 May 2024: https://www.caribbeanaccelerator.org/sargassum-a-common-caribbean-climate-problem/
Marsh R, Skliris N, Tompkins EL, Dash J, Dominguez Almela V, Tonon T, et al. (2023) Climate-sargassum interactions across scales in the tropical Atlantic. PLOS Clim 2(7): e0000253. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000253
Resiere, D., Kallel, H., Florentin, J., Banydeen, R., Compton, K., Gueye, P., Mehdaoui, H., & Neviere, R. (2023). Sargassum seaweed in the Caribbean: A major public health problem still unsolved. Journal of global health, 13, 03017. https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.13.03017
Shirley Lin and Kalesh Loakman, COP28: Examining the Outcomes and their Relation to Protecting the Rights and Interests of Vulnerable Developing States. Human Rights Research Center, February 12, 2024: https://www.humanrightsresearch.org/post/cop28-examining-the-outcomes-and-their-relation-to-protecting-the-rights-and-interests-of-vulnerabl
National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, Sargassum: From Sea to Shore: https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/news/sargassum/