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Southern Chile
Threats
The captivating beauty and awe-inspiring scenery can be misleading - as globalization and its effects are taking an extreme toll on the region's health. Local people, scientists and conservation experts are witnessing the rapid deterioration of the region's ecosystem in the form of species extinction, pollution, diseased animals and glacial melting.
Deforestation of temperate rainforest in
the Valdivia ecoregion.
© WWF-Canon/Edward PARKER
Forests
Unsustainable logging and conversion of habitat to plantations of pine and eucalyptus – used to create wood chips for export - have dramatically reduced native forest cover. Forests of the Coastal Range and the Central Valley have been especially hard-hit, having lost up to 90 percent of their original forest cover. Little of the remaining biologically rich area is under government protection. To protect the forests and the people and animals who depend on them, WWF is supporting the creation of new private and public protected areas and the sustainable use of native forests.
Salmon farming is a significant industry for Southern Chile, as 60 percent of farmed salmon in U.S. markets is from Chile. Salmon cages like the one seen here can be found throughout the Gulf of Corcovado. The salmon industry is negatively impacting the fragile marine life found beneath these waters.
© WWF/Susan Díaz
Aquaculture and fishing
The expansion of industrial fishing and aquaculture activities in the Gulf of Corcovado are major threats to the sustainability of the ecosystem and the many species inhabiting the area. Overexploitation, increased maritime traffic, trawling and incidental bycatch all negatively impact the marine environment.
Significant threats to Southern Chile's freshwater and marine habitats are caused by a growing aquaculture industry – primarily salmon farming and cultured mussel production. Unsustainable salmon farming entails raising enormous numbers of this invasive species in densely packed net cages and providing them large amounts of nutrient rich food, high doses of antibiotics and other chemicals. We are already seeing adverse impacts - levels of pollution from chemicals and salmon feces are rising and native marine animals are showing signs of disease and stress. Now, the ISA virus is rapidly spreading throughout various salmon farms - resulting in large-scale deaths of these fish.
Read a June 2007 WWF study documenting the negative environmental impacts of the salmon industry on Chile's freshwater lakes.
Climate change
Global warming is already accelerating glacial melting and break-up in the region. Models predict a warmer, drier future. Because of the large number of endemic species with narrow climatic requirements, climate change means that extinction risks in the area are very high.
