A leafy forest covers parts of Chile’s Hualpén Peninsula. Image: German Poo-Caamaño via Flikr
By Fabián Barría
Sea, cliffs and forest. That’s the natural landscape that tourists enjoy when they visit the Hualpén Peninsula, a nature sanctuary in the central-south of Chile and that shelters dozens of endemic species. Experts warn that the place could be irreparably damaged if a real estate project is approved in the middle of it.
The Grayling Fish Hatchery facilities. Image Sara Alfaro Cornejo
By Sara Alfaro Cornejo
The Au Sable River, one of the most pristine water bodies in North America thanks to its stable base flow and temperatures, has been at the center of a dispute that is often repeated when it comes to projects with an environmental impact that faces organizations that protect the environment and companies that affect it.
By Paula Díaz Levi
Despite the original abundance of its natural resources, mismanagement has led Chile to a serious water deficit. This is demonstrated by three emblematic cases where the major protagonists are fossil waters, avocados and rain forests.
Chile is a land of contrasts. In the north lies one of the most arid deserts on the planet, the central zone hosts one of the five Mediterranean ecosystems of the world and the south is marked by rain and lush forests.
Marshy forests of the region that suffer the same drying conditions of the Ñague forest. Image: Antonio Maldonado.
By Medely Cortés
The so-called “Norte Chico” (Small North) of Chile has a semi-arid climate. Yet shrubs and bushes are common and, there are places where the flora is abundant and that trees seem out of place.
But a short time ago, Chile´s Center for Advanced Studies in Arid Zones (CEAZA) received an alarm call: the Ñague forest was drying up.
Yes, there is a forest in the city of Los Vilos, south of the region of Coquimbo. Its existence dates back thousands of years and has remained firm despite climatic fluctuations.
But lately it has languished.