[Taxacom] The Chilean HidroAysen dam project in the heart of theValdivian Temperate Forests

[Robin Leech]

Guess humans don't learn.  They are doing now what we did in Canada and the 
US some years ago, and
which we are now fixing or altering in some places.
We have huge transmission lines here in Alberta that are being built to 
carry power southward - a great indication
that Albertans will not see much, if any, of it.
Robin
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Elizabeth Arias-Bohart" <etarias.bohart at berkeley.edu>
To: <taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, May 18, 2011 1:00 PM
Subject: [Taxacom] The Chilean HidroAysen dam project in the heart of 
theValdivian Temperate Forests



The Valdivian forests despite their uniqueness, outstanding importance, and 
global recognition continue to become, dramatically in the very near future, 
not only fragmented but wiped off our planet. The current trajectory of the 
recently approved HidroAysen project of  $3.2 billion envisages 5 dams to 
tap the Baker and Pascua rivers in Patagonia, will not only lead to the 
eventual total loss of forests, and the species they support, but will also 
lose an invaluable piece of the world’s biotic and evolutionary history.

This ecoregion is considered highly vulnerable and globally outstanding in 
terms of biological distinctiveness, and it has been placed as highest 
priority for conservation, It is also defined as an ecoregion of global 
importance by the World Wildlife International, Conservation International, 
World Bank and Bird Life International. Its loss would be a significant loss 
to global biodiversity and to our understanding of it.

The HidroAysen dam project will encompass an area of over 7,000 ha of 
national parks, reserves and pristine wild areas of Valdivian temperate rain 
forests. Amazingly enough instead of studying, protecting and conserving 
this unique ecosystem, it will be fragmented, devastated and exterminated by 
the building of 5 dams followed by the construction of a 2,300 kilometer 
transmission line which, with the giant machinery and dam work, will 
devastate life in several kilometers around vast sectors of pristine forests 
never surveyed before and thus no record of its plant and animal biota or 
future for it.  This project will also go through 5 native Indian Mapuche 
communities that have land and live in this area: the Chilean government has 
been in dispute with these native people over land ownership for several 
decades.

In addition, the transmission lines, with towers 70 m high (like a building 
of 20 floors), each 400 m wide, analysts say, will fragment at least 6 
national parks, 11 national reserves, 32 wild private areas. The line of 
2,300 km length and 100 m wide will require over 23,000 ha to be deforested 
to carry in the giant machinery for the construction.  All the machinery 
that will travel will also go through a way of destruction besides the 
inundation of areas smashing and exterminating life that took millions of 
years to evolve to what it is now. To build a separate area and plant native 
forests, as a remedy or consolation prize will never reproduce the complex 
ecosystems and endemic flora and fauna that exist today in the area that is 
planned for destruction and construction of the new dams.  See it at 
http://www.hidroaysen.cl/site/mitigacion.html

This project will not alleviate poverty and only companies that required 
energy will benefit from this project, not the poor and not most Chilean 
citizens. Why they think and use other forms of energy? Chile has several 
other ways to obtain energy instead of sacrificing the forests and the 
Indian Mapuche communities.

In our research project, supported by the USA National Science Foundation 
DEB-0445413 (to Arias & Will), allowed us to survey the coastal Valdivian 
forests and brought to scientific knowledge over 200 new genera and hundreds 
of new beetle and other arthropod species: see it at 
www.coleopterosdechile.cl

 There are over 299 plant species that will vanish and several of them are 
endemic to this ecoregion, there are no records or catalog for animal 
species or arthropod diversity because this ecoregion has never been 
surveyed for neither beetles or spiders or any other arthropods.

On another important point, none of the project authorities are biologists 
and soon after the first phase of the project was approved, many Chilean 
citizens in several major as well as other cities went into the street 
screaming and protesting for justice for the defenseless forests. In 
addition, the commissioners that voted in favor for this project were kept 
indoors for their own safety as people threw rocks and battled police with 
water cannons and tear gas. Similar scenes occurred in the Chilean capital 
of Santiago as well.

Why the President has approved such atrocity?

No studies on biodiversity of biota have ever been conducted in the area and 
no current project is undergoing to, at the very least, to preserve and 
document what it appears may disappear.



Could you please sign and send a comment to help to stop this HydroAysen 
project to the web site below

Patagonia without a dam 
http://www.patagoniasinrepresas.cl/final/index-en.php

Map of the area at:

http://www.probeinternational.org/chilean-patagonia/map-proposed-dams-chiles-patagonia

Sincerely,

Dr. Elizabeth Arias-Bohart
Essig Museum of Entomology
1101 Valley Life Sciences  Bldg. #4780
University of California
Berkeley CA 94720
www.coleopterosdechile.cl
etarias.bohart at berkeley.edu
   So  many beetles, so little time


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