Spain Algae Invasion Triggers 'Environmental Nightmare'

MADRID & TARIFA, SPAIN - As tourists finally return to Spain's beaches this summer, they may be facing an unpleasant surprise: patches of thick brown algae that have washed up on the golden sands of its most popular resorts. 

Metric tons of   Rugulopteryx okamurae — an alga believed to come from Asia in the ballast tanks of cargo ships — lie on the beaches of resorts in southern Spain in an invasion which threatens the already struggling tourism industry, upsets marine biodiversity and has left local fishermen with near-empty nets.  Elsewhere in the Mediterranean, the same brown sludge has appeared on the other side of the Straights of Gibraltar on the coast of northern Morocco.  With the same texture as seaweed, it can cause mild irritation to the skin if touched during swimming, and the plant's rotting remains are an eyesore for tourists.