Chile triples protected Pacific ecosystems

CHILE – Last Wednesday, the Chilean government officially ordered the creation of the Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park tripling its protected Pacific oceanic areas.

“At a time when oceans are hit by the over-exploitation of species, pollution and phenomena such as climate change, the protection of these islands means a great step forward for oceans in Chile and the rest of the world,” said Vice President of Oceana in Chile Liesbeth van der Meer.

The Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park has a surface of 300,035 square kilometeres and is designed as a no-take area where fishing and other extractive activities will be banned.

With the establishment of the Nazca-Desventuradas Park, Chile will not only have the largest marine park in the Americas, but it will also protect 12 per cent of its marine surface area, accounting for a 4.4 per cent increase.

Behind the proposal to create this marine park was an expedition conducted by Oceana and National Geographic in February 2013.

A team of renowned national and international scientists conducted the first-ever exploration of the region and used cutting-edge technology to document one of the most pristine and wild places in South America and the Pacific.

Scientists found a unique ecosystem with no signs of human impact and an outstanding 90 per cent level of endemic species, which are species only found in that particular region.

Additionally, there is an abundance of algae forests, fragile deep-sea corals and fish populations including tuna, yellow tail amberjacks and deep water sharks.

An indicator of the exceptional health of these ecosystems are large-sized lobsters, with some individuals extending more than one meter and weighing up to eight kilograms.

After last week’s publication of the decree, the next step is to prepare a management plan for this protected and monitoring the huge area.

“The Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park is a great step forward to achieve Chile’s commitment at the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity,” said concluded van der Meer.

“It is extremely important to protect ecologically important zones in Chile and for other countries to follow suit by establishing more protected areas that can promote the conservation and recovery of oceans and their resources.”

- PNC