Vieques receives tractor for clearing seaweed from beaches

 The new “sargassum harvester” tractor, a 2026 Workmaster 120 model, was to begin seaweed collection operations Thursday and will be used mainly in the Sun Bay beach area of Vieques. (allmachines.com)

By THE STAR STAFF

A new specialized tractor for collecting sargassum, or brown macroalgae (seaweed), was delivered Thursday to the offshore island municipality of Vieques.

With an investment of $155,480 allocated by Speaker of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Nuñez, the modern “sargassum harvester” is a 2026 Workmaster 120 model and was to begin operations immediately and will be used mainly in the Sun Bay beach area.

The House speaker who joined Vieques Mayor José “Junito” Corcino Acevedo to receive the tractor, noted that “we took the necessary steps, reallocating funds” during preparation of the fiscal 2026-27 budget “so that the municipality would have the resources to purchase this sargassum harvester.”

Securing the allocation involved coordinating with the Financial Oversight and Management Board and the Office of Management and Budget.

Corcino noted that the harvester “has a very important purpose: to clear the Sun Bay beach area, one of Vieques’ main tourist attractions.”

“Our island municipality needed this equipment, and now we have it,” he said.

According to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2025 broke the record for sargassum accumulation in the Tropical Atlantic, with over 40 million metric tons. This year’s accumulation is expected to surpass 45 million metric tons. The previous record was 36 million metric tons, recorded in 2005.

Sargassum season in Puerto Rico typically begins in May and extends until mid-October.