Living Land

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native forest restoration, and especially Law No. 19.561/1998

on forest support for the restoration of degraded land and

land under desertification processes, which was included as a

goal in PANCCD-Chile. These legislations have provided ‘net

zero deforestation’ in Chile. In other important matters, forest

fires are also a first class driver for degradation in this ecore-

gion. During 2015, forest fires in the Araucanía region, 900

km south of Santiago city, affected two national parks of the

National System of Protected Areas of the State administrated

by CONAF, causing public commotion. The area affected

contained significant stands of

Araucaria araucana

, a symbolic

tree for Chilean, Mapuche and Pehuenche ethnic people.

CONAF carried out a participative process with representa-

tives of the community, especially Mapuche and Pehuenche

people, to elaborate a restoration plan for the China Muerta

National Reserve. The strategic activities included afforesta-

tion with seedlings from local genetic material, soil and water

conservation works and management of remaining vegetation.

Another project in the entire temperate ecoregion is the Forest

Water Catchment Restoration Project. Within this ecoregion

Valdivia city was one of the rainiest places in Chile, but since

the 1960s rainfall has decreased by 30 per cent in this region.

During the severe drought which began in 2007, sources of

drinking water were severely affected so counties in the region

had to deliver water to people in tank trucks, something fully

unexpected for this region. This project was funded by the

targeted support of UN-REDD and UNDP, and its strategic

activities aimed to increase carbon sequestration and improve

the water regime in catchments for drinking water supply.

In the austral ecoregion, CONAF developed a Sustainable

Firewood Production Pilot Project funded by FCPF. Almost

20 per cent of national energy consumption is provided by

the country’s forests, accounting for almost 15 million tons

per year. Firewood production is a huge driver for degrada-

tion in Chile. Firewood has been a subsistence productive

activity performed by small producers, normally in an

informal scheme of production and trade. Forests subject to

firewood production barely have an authorized management

plan, so the project provided access for small landowners

to technical assistance assuring forest sustainability, as well

as gathering points and drying systems for firewood and

support on trade chains. In addition CONAF, through the

Sustainable Land Management in Chile project, developed a

pilot project on an Early Warning System for Illegal Logging

to demonstrate strategic activities aimed at the conservation

of existing stocks of carbon and improving the sustainability

of forests subject to inappropriate management practices,

especially illegal logging.

In the island oceanic territories ecoregion, Rapa Nui

(Easter Island) located in Polynesia 4,000 km west of the

continent, has a unique world culture heritage. The ‘Moais’,

sculptures of paramount dimensions, have captured the

imagination of people through the ages and their meaning

remains hidden. Rapa Nui has also been a global example

of what land degradation can provide for mankind, setting

the stage for extinction. It is supposed that the popula-

tion reached 12,000 people at its maximum. They depleted

natural resources to provide food for such an enormous

population in such a tiny space. The Easter Island Palm

disappeared along with many other symbolic forest species

like ‘Toromiro’ (Sophora toromiro), the tree that provided

wood for another mystery yet not solved, the ‘speaking

tables’ containing the written language of Rapa Nui. CONAF

developed a project typology for Rapa Nui to determine best

management practices appropriate for afforestation on the

island, to improve carbon stocks and to restore degraded

land, as a strategy to foster the role of forests for the provi-

sion of ecosystem services for human well-being.

Image: CONAF

Rapa Nui, in the island oceanic territories ecoregion, is both a wonder of the

world and an example of the threat from land degradation

Image: CONAF

Protected areas, like the Torres del Paine National Park in the austral

ecoregion, help to address land degradation

iving

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