Southern Chile

Unsustainable logging practices, conversion of native forest to plantations and large infrastructure projects challenge the ecological integrity of Chile’s temperate forests. Climate change, growing fisheries and salmon industries, and a weak regulatory environment also endanger the future of nature here.

Protecting this special place requires a local-to-global approach that focuses on salmon and pulp and paper industries. We are focused on four initiatives that present the best opportunities for changing the global markets that challenge the future Southern Chile. 

Creating a network of coastal and marine protected areas
The expansion of salmon farming in the Gulf of Corcovado represents a major threat to Southern Chile’s marine ecosystem and habitats. Overfishing, pollution, maritime traffic, trawling and bycatch all negatively impact the marine environment. We are working with local conservation groups, government officials, communities and the private sector to create a marine protected area the size of Costa Rica in the Gulf of Corcovado. 

Protecting native coastal forests and local communities
Unsustainable logging and conversion of habitats to pulp and paper plantations have dramatically reduced native forest cover throughout Southern Chile. We are working with the forest industry, indigenous groups and local communities to create a network of public and private protected areas and encourage sustainable use of native forests—especially in Chile’s Coastal Range and Central Valley, which are home to important remnants of native forest.

Transforming the forest industry
As a leading exporter of paper pulp and wood chips, Chile has lost much of its native forest cover. The Valdivian temperate forests’ natural resources are increasingly challenged by a low level of awareness about the forest’s ecological value and a lack of government capacity to enforce environmental laws. WWF is urging timber companies to establish conservation areas within forests that meet certification standards of the Forest Stewardship Council.

Reshaping the salmon industry
Chile is one of the world’s largest producers of farmed salmon, and intensive industry expansion is causing severe impacts on Southern Chile’s fragile freshwater lakes and coastal areas. We are collaborating with salmon farmers to put in place environmental and social standards that minimize the impacts of salmon farming and support economic growth opportunities for local people.