Real-Time Monitoring of Sargassum Blooms and Toxic Gas Emissions Along Shorelines and Waste Sites

Sargassum blooms have surged across Caribbean waters, presenting a growing environmental and public health challenge. The massive influx of this seaweed along coastlines has overwhelmed local resources and infrastructure, forcing several islands to declare states of emergency. The rapid accumulation of sargassum not only threatens marine ecosystems but also generates hazardous gases such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia during decomposition, which adversely affect air quality and human health. These blooms have disrupted key economic sectors, including tourism and energy production, while existing forecasting models struggle to provide accurate, localized predictions necessary for effective management. Current models used to forecast sargassum landings are limited in resolution and often fail to predict localized accumulation, resulting in unanticipated beaching events, economic losses, and increased onshore decay. High-resolution, real-time environmental data is necessary to improve these predictions and enable timely intervention. This study addresses that gap by designing an integrated platform for real-time monitoring of both sargassum blooms and associated gas emissions. We present a mobile sensing system mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), equipped with sensors to measure carbon dioxide, wind speed, humidity, and particulate matter, along with a coordinated ground-based station for data reception and processing. A communication protocol is developed to relay data between UAVs and the fixed station, creating a distributed sensing network. Strategic deployment locations for both airborne and fixed units are identified to optimize coverage of vulnerable shorelines and sargassum aggregation zones. The platform is designed to serve as a modular, adaptable tool for environmental monitoring and early-warning response in coastal regions impacted by sargassum.