Climate Change in Chile - Investigating the Future of Our Planet
Human-Environment Interaction
Human-Environment Interaction encompasses a wide variety of topics - I will only touch on a few major ones here
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Mining
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First, I want to discuss the mining industry in Chile. As I mentioned earlier in the forest section, heavy metals from mining are the largest export in the country. Chile has a long history of mining, from salt peter to lithium.
Along our trip we had the chance to visit a ghost town called Humberstone. This town is the protected remnants of an old mine where people were forced to collect and process salt. When the workers marched to Iquique, the largest nearby city, to ask for better pay and working conditions, all of the community members were massacred. Luckily, Humberstone now just serves as a memory of the horrible event.
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(1) A sign commemorating when Humberstone became a protected and historical area
(2) A video overlooking the entirety of Humberstone, taken from the lookout point in Humberstone
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Salt and lithium mines can still be found all over Chile, especially in the northern region. Salt flats in the Atacama Desert are cleared out for their high concentrations of salt. While the salt itself is not necessarily a bad thing to mine, the extraction process requires lots of water and leaves lots of waste.
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Chaxa Lagoon is one of few examples of a salty lagoon that has not been destroyed for its natural resources. Here we got to see pools of water with high salinity that provided the perfect habitat for phytoplankton – one of flamingos’ favorite snacks. The lagoons were located in the middle of a dry salty flat, providing an incredible view of the flamingos flyhing around at sunset. This was a truly unique experience because most of these places have disappeared after the mining companies swept through the area.
(1) An image showing a part of Chaxa Lagoon at sunset
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Significant water use is not unique to salt mining. Lithium mining is another main problem when it comes to water use, because the companies have to use lots of water to keep the machines running and to cool them down. This has led to many major issues throughout Chile because they are taking potable water away from communities that need it. Mining is also draining underground water reserves and contaminating other water sources. They pollute the environment surrounding the mine, making the area hazardous for people who live and work there.
A current example of this in Chile is in a park near Santiago, the capital city. El Morado Natural Monument is a protected area of land in the Andes outside of Santiago. Here, the El Morado Glacier provides spectacular views and a fresh water source. Recently, a mining company proposed a way to dig underneath the natural monument to access the underground water that is stored there. It is hard to predict what the consequences of this project could be, but I’m certain it would be nothing positive. Similar to the large-scale fishing and logging industries, the mining industry is taking everything they can with no respect for the environment or the organisms (including humans) that inhabit it.
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Environmental Respect, or Lack Thereof
Another issue we saw all throughout Chile was the overall disrespect for the land, or lack of respect. Everything from bustling cities to the most beautiful and natural tourist attraction shows signs of human interaction.
The streets of Santiago, Iquique, and Valparaiso were covered in poop and trash (mostly dog poop). Especially in Valparaiso, there appeared to be no concern for the natural environment or the protection of it, except for in small, privately owned places. Iquique and Santiago at least had well maintained green spaces and parks for outdoor recreation.
Even in the national parks we visited, there were many signs of the negative impact that humans have on the natural world. The wildfire in Torres del Paine that I mentioned earlier is just one example of this. In moon valley, tourists are restricted from walking almost anywhere in the park because of former destruction done to the area. In the picture below, the interesting formation used to be known as the three Mary’s, until a tourist decided to climb on one and make it two and a half. Beside that I included a picture of ancient petroglyphs near Codpa where people have gone and carved their names into the stone next to historical artifacts.
(1) An image of the "Three Mary's" in Valle de la Luna
(2) An image showing how people have scratched their names into the rock next to ancient petroglyphs outside of Codpa
An image taken in Valle de la Luna showing the great sand dune with a chain and "no pass" sign