Behind the scenes: critical insights for marine conservation at Southern Chile

• In Event: Environmental Governance

Abstract

In October 2015 during the “Our Ocean Conference” President Michelle Bachelet announced the establishment of the “Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park” the largest Marine Protected Area in the Americas; achieving the CDB Aichi Targets and becoming the leader of marine conservation in the region.
Despite the progress on ocean protection represented by the creation of this large Marine Protected Area (MPA), the coastal and inshore conservation, where the multiple uses and conflicts are more intense, remains reduced to particular cases. This paper presents the results of a postdoctoral research conducted at the “Pitipalena-Añihue MPA” in the Corcovado Gulf at southern Chile, the last MPA established in the coastal area.
The results highlight: i) the establishment of the MPAs is a result of a long and contentious process of socio-territorial transformation of northern Patagonia, currently characterized by the ambiguous relation of the expansion of salmon industry over the latest pristine seas of the world and its environmental protection; ii) the conservation initiatives have been promoted by different actors in multiples decision-making arenas who have mobilized different kind of resources trough translocal governance networks; iii) the major challenge for an effective and social inclusive marine conservation is to build legitimate and democratic governance arenas to reduce conflicts over natural resources, ensure environmental quality and promote human well-being.
These critical issues demonstrate that behind the biodiversity global targets and the creation of “bigger paper parks” there are enormous social and political complexities that are not integrated in the environmental policy-making process.

Author

• Francisco Araos, Universidad de Los Lagos