MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Regional News.

Headlines:
Massive tourist exodus; Red tide strikes southern Chile; Ozone day in Punta Arenas.

Massive tourist exodus

Over 20,000 Chileans are expected to travel to Mendoza, Argentina, beginning this Wednesday in coincidence with the two days national independence holiday that in many cases will extend over the weekend. According to the Chilean Tourist Office a million Santiago residents will be leaving town for the camp or sea resorts, and another million in the provinces have decided to travel to other places or overseas. The sea resorts of Viña del Mar and La Serena expect 400,000 visitors and Mendoza where Santiago residents can drive by crossing the Liberators Pass in the Andes will be attracting over 20,000 tourists. "We're satisfied, tourism is picking up again both domestic and overseas. We're 10% above recent years' average, and our information indicates that hotel, hostel and national park reservations are in the range of 80 to 90%", said Oscar Santelices, Director of the Chilean Tourist Office. Since the devaluation of the Argentine currency, and given the strong appreciation of the Chilean peso (680 to the US dollar from 750 last March), Chileans are regularly crossing the border and have become habitués of Buenos Aires, Bariloche, Mendoza plus Río Gallegos and Comodoro Rivadavia in the extreme south of the Argentine Patagonia. However Chilean sanitary and law enforcement authorities anticipated that security measures will be reinforced during the two days holiday particularly regarding alcohol and drug consumption, as well as food quality inspections given the proliferation of street vendors operating in "non hygienic conditions".

Red tide strikes southern Chile

Particularly high readings of red tide forced Chilean fisheries and sanitary authorities to close Puerto Edén in Patagonia for the extraction of bivalve molluscs. The environmental health department of Puerto Natales hospital is responsible for the micro toxic readings of molluscs extracted in the extreme south of Chile. Puerto Edén a small fishing village has repeatedly been exposed to red tide and the latest readings in the area are as follows: Carlos Sur, 403 micrograms; Morton island, 487 micrograms; Salamandra island 288; Ckawana 261; Falsa point, 194; Crossover island, 96 and Foot island 181. The readings correspond to September 9 mussel extraction. Microgram toxicity limit per hundred grams of flesh is 80. The information was passed onto Punta Arenas fisheries and health authorities who immediately declared a ban on mollusc extraction in a eighty miles range with epicentre in Puerto Edén.

Ozone day in Punta Arenas

Punta Arenas celebrated this Tuesday the international Preservation of the Ozone layer Day with the inauguration of several "light" meters that indicate Ultra Violet rays intensity and alert the local population to seek protection. The mobile meters in school buses similar to red, yellow traffic lights plus a solar meter in compliance with United Nations and the World Heath Organization, WHO, standards are part of the local authorities' campaign to instruct residents about ultra violet radiation and photo protection. The Punta Arenas ceremony coincides with a United Nations world campaign to educate children about the dangers of over exposure to solar rays. "By reducing children and teenagers exposure to the sun we can substantially reduce the risks of skin cancer, cataracts and other related injuries that only appear later in life", said Dr. Lee Jong-wook director general of WHO in Geneva on launching the international campaign. WHO's objective in coordination with the UN Environmental Program Intersun is that all schools in the world include the risks of UV rays in the official curricula, following the examples of Australia and the United States. "Since a significant part of solar exposure takes place before children reach 18, it's evident that teaching children about the future hazards of solar exposure is crucial, and school programs have shown to be the most effective way to communicate and educate infants", added Dr. Lee Jong-wook. With the gradual thinning of the ozone layer the risks of skin cancer and cataracts have ballooned and WHO estimates that 3 million people catch non malign melanomas and 130,000 malign melanomas every year. Currently one of five North American residents will experiment skin cancer sometime in their lives, indicated WHO Director general. WHO estimates that cataracts have caused blindness in almost 15 million people, 20% of which are believed to have originated in sun over exposure in countries close to the equator, such as India and Pakistan. For further information: www.who.int/uv or www.unep.org/ozone/ozone-day2003 .