MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Luxembourg size national park in south Chile

Chilean president Ricardo Lagos signed last week a decree turning a wildlife forested area in south Chile, similar in extension to Luxemburg, into a Nature Sanctuary which will be managed by the Pumalin Foundation.

"Here, today we're containing death to prevent tomorrow's hunger. Preserving and conservation of these forests is part of our commitment as Chileans. And now the Pumalin Park has become a commitment for all of us", said President Lagos during the official ceremony.

Basically the Nature Sanctuary status means all activities in the 289,000 hectares park as of now will be conditioned to an environmental impact survey.

However, achieving the status has not been an easy task for United States millionaire and conservationist Richard Tompkins who began buying land in the Tenth Region back in 1990 until he reached the approximately 3.000 square kilometres.

Actually Mr. Tompkins in the ceremony signed the documents handing property of the land to the Pumalin Foundation. Simultaneously President Lagos, Education Minister Sergio Bitar, Chief cabinet Eduardo Dockendorff and officials from the Forestry Department stamped their signatures on the decree by which the National Monuments Council of Chile recognizes Pumalin Park as a Nature Sanctuary, the first time a private conservationist donation of such magnitude was recorded in Chile.

"It's a first time experience for Chile since never before a private citizen and the Chilean government had agreed to make viable the first foreign investment project with conservationist purposes", underlined Mr. Dockendorff.

Mr. Tompkins activities originally were looked at with certain suspicion by the Chilean forest and wood industry, even arguing that so much land in the border area with Argentina "could not be in the hands of a foreigner".

However last April an agreement was reached by which the US millionaire handed the park's property to the Pumalin Foundation.

The park in now under protection from the Chilean National Monuments Council and the Pumalin Foundation will be responsible for the management.

Mr. Tompkins will have four seats in the foundation's board, including himself, plus the governor of the Chilean Tenth Region of Aysen, a representative from the Austral University and the Bishop of Aysen.

"The Foundation will promote scientific research in the park and prevent exploitation of natural resources", said Mr. Tompkins.