Since mats of the normally helpful alga (known as sargassum) swelled in abundance in 2011, the brown macroalga has become a growing threat to coastal ecosystems and populations throughout the Gulf of Mexico.
This is the framework for Carbonwave, which recently raised $5 million to give the massive algae blooms alternative uses.
Researchers say the now 5,000-mile-wide “Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt” is likely caused by agricultural runoff, and climate change could also be a factor.
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Recent sargassum outbreaks are prompting people to think of new ways to get rid of it, and potential applications are already diverse. Researchers and business owners hope to use it to make syrup, bricks, and possibly jet fuel. Carbonwave, based in Boston and Puerto Rico, is employing it in fertilizer, cosmetics, and even synthetic leather.
Carbonwave claims the new funding will help the company expand production of its algae-based emulsifier for cosmetics. The company is backed by ESG-themed investment firms Natixis and Viridios Capital, as well as VC Katapult. In a statement, the company said it “has already sold half a ton” of its emulsifier, which it developed as an alternative to petroleum-based components. The company also said its sargassum fertilizer “reduces the need for” nitrogen fertilizer, which contributes to climate change.
Carbonwave produces these items using a “proprietary extraction process,” according to CEO Geoff Chapin, which entails crushing the seaweed and eliminating the arsenic. The method produces liquid fertilizer, and the residual pulp serves as the foundation for the emulsifier and fake leather. According to Chapin, the firm uses “almost every part of the seaweed to make these products.”
Carbonwave is one of many companies working to turn algae into environmentally friendly products. They include Keel Labs, which is funded by H&M and develops textiles; a host of bioplastics companies, including Loliware and ULUU; and Umaro, which makes marine blubber. Many seaweed companies are focused on commercializing seaweed in some form, and a few such as Carbonwave and Seaweed Generation on sargassum.
“We need to put it to good use before it creates more ecological and climate harm,” Carbonwave told reporters.