(June 12, 2007) A new book about Chile�s vast glacier reserves aims to
focus greater public attention on the important role glaciers play in
the nation�s water systems and in its natural patrimony.
Written by environmentalist Roxana B�rquez, �Chilean Glaciers:
Strategic Freshwater Reserves� give an in depth examination of the
1,737 glaciers that cover 15,304 square kilometers of Chilean terrain,
and which account for between 50 and 60 percent of all of South
America�s glacial areas.
B�rquez, a professor at Santiago�s Universidad de Chile, said her study
was inspired by the lack of academic research on Chile�s glaceris and
the attempt byCanadian mining company Barrick Gold to destroy the
glaciers atop its Pascua Lama mine (ST April 12). �The glaciers are
fundamentally of concern mostly to the scientific world, and only
through civilian dialogue does it become a matter of social and later
political concern,� said B�rquez.
�The glaciers aren�t really included in any part of our public or legal
discourse,� explained B�rquez. �We must watch the glaciers where
Codelco and Barrick are building their mines, so they cannot claim that
the disappearances of the glaciers are due to climate change.�
The glaciers directly affecting most Chileans are located in Chile�s
center and north, and their water melt help support mining and
extractive industries. �Scientists, thus far, have only dedicated
studies to the southern glaciers, glaciers that have no real immediate
effect on the population. The studies on the north and center of the
country are old, this data needs to be updated urgently,� B�rquez said.
In related news, studies done by the Chilean Antarctic Institute
(INACH) show that increased CO2 emissions are acidifying the ocean
surrounding Antarctica, bringing disastrous results. �The CO2 in the
atmosphere is dissolving into cold water with ease, and affecting
essential organisms in the food chain. Invertebrates like phytoplankton
are having difficulty forming their protective shells which allow them
to survive,� said INACH director Jos� Retemales.
If the plankton disappear, so, too, would the krill that are the base diet of many large sea mammals like sea lions and whales.
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