MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay: donated islands for environmental bilateral initiative

Orsi thanked Butler for his donation

Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi took delivery on Thursday of three islands in the Uruguay River purchased by US philanthropist Gilbert Butler to develop a binational “Peace Park” Project together with neighboring Argentina.

Orsi formally accepted the donation from the environmental organization AMBÁ and Butler Conservation Inc. on behalf of the Uruguayan Government. The 514-hectare gift is the cornerstone of an ambitious plan for a binational initiative.

The three donated islands —Chala, Ingá, and Pingüino—will be integrated into the Esteros de Farrapos e Islas del Río Uruguay National Park. Environment Minister Edgardo Ortuño announced an even broader expansion of the National System of Protected Areas (SNAP).

The Uruguayan Government will also contribute 16 additional state-owned islands and surrounding continental waters to the protected zone. Hence, the total protected area will increase from 16,424 to 21,565 hectares, effectively doubling the number of islands under environmental protection from 19 to 35.

Orsi underscored the diplomatic significance of the project, noting that a parallel conservation effort is underway on the Argentine side of the river. “This site has to be a binational park... it would be unprecedented and a signal to the world and to ourselves,” Orsi stated. “Think of the Uruguay River as something that unites us, not something that separates us.”

The Broad Front leader thanked Butler, acknowledging that the project began under his predecessor at the Executive Tower (former President Luis Lacalle Pou). “Like almost everything of this magnitude, it spans more than one term. The good thing is that it is coming to fruition,” Orsi noted.

Ortuño also described the project as an “experiment in tourism associated with the protection of nature.”

Butler, who personally scouted the territory by air before initiating the purchase in 2022, described the future corridor as a “park of peace.” His foundation's goal is to ensure the preservation of the Uruguay River's lower reaches while providing low-impact recreational opportunities for the public.