Just days before the start of the summer vacation season, the popular beach of Rincón de Guayabitos, located in the municipality of Compostela, Nayarit, one of the region’s main tourist destinations, is experiencing a significant accumulation of macroalgae from the Hypnea genus. The situation is beginning to seriously affect visitor arrivals and the sales of local businesses.
“We have definitely seen fewer visitors. As you can see, the beach is very empty—I can’t lie to you, you’ve seen it yourself. The algae are affecting us a little,” said Jesús, a local tourism promoter.
The algae have completely changed the beach’s characteristic landscape and are causing discomfort among the few tourists who have arrived for their vacations.
Tourists Consider Changing Destinations Due to Beach Conditions
“It’s uncomfortable because when everything is clean, you can walk along the beach very easily. Right now, you have to walk around it. My husband even says it irritated his skin, although I’m not sure if that’s true,” said Graciela, a tourist from Zapopan.
Given the current water conditions, some visitors are already considering moving to other destinations within the state.
“We’re staying today, but tomorrow we’ll see if the other beaches are any different. Honestly, we don’t know whether the nearby beaches have the same problem, but it’s very uncomfortable being surrounded by all of this,” said Patricia, a tourist from Guadalajara.
Local Vendors Request Machinery to Remove the Algae
Beach vendors are increasingly concerned about the economic impact the situation may have during the high tourist season.
“Yes, the vacation season is coming. That’s why we’re so worried and discouraged. We’ve been talking with the mayor of Compostela to see if they can provide us with machinery to scrape all of this away and remove it, but we don’t know what the government is going to do,” said beach vendor José Luis Mendoza.
Although workers from the state government and the local tourism trust have been removing the algae manually, their efforts have proven insufficient due to the constant flow of marine vegetation being washed ashore by the waves.
“It first appeared the Saturday before last, and we’ve been cleaning it ever since. At first, it seemed like it was gone, but this Sunday an even larger amount washed ashore,” explained Juan Pablo, an employee of the Nayarit Tourism Trust.
Beach vendors and local business owners have also joined the cleanup efforts, but they insist that collecting the algae by hand is simply not practical.
“We need machinery because there’s just too much of it. Honestly, doing it by hand is impossible. It would be much better if they brought equipment to clean the beach properly because our sales have dropped significantly,” said Jony, a shaved ice vendor.
Authorities Rule Out Health Risks at Rincón de Guayabitos
Despite the complaints and the negative appearance of the beach, state health authorities maintain that the beach remains safe for recreational use and have ruled out any health risks associated with direct contact with the marine vegetation.
“These are naturally occurring algae that help clean the sea. However, this seaweed, similar to what has appeared in other states, is unusual and has only recently arrived. We want to assure the public that our beaches remain suitable for recreational use, as recently certified by Cofepris,” said Lourdes Patricia Magaña, Director of the State Commission for the Protection Against Sanitary Risks of Nayarit.
Source: excelsior
