Mosciatti on Desertification, Deforestation

In this opinion piece, Mosciatti reflects on the history of Chile’s deforestation and the replacement of native woods by pine and eucalyptus plantations, one of the catalysts for the wave of forest fires currently sweeping Chile.

He covers a lot of ground, but doesn’t mention the creeping urbanization that is converting fertile farmland into parcelas de agrado and condominios or the unregulated urban developments, including tomas within wooded areas where human activity can, and does, start fires.

Mosciatti acknowledges the unselfish activities of Douglas Tompkins. The Chilean establishment of the day couldn’t comprehend why he would spend large sums of money to conserve native woodland, that concept being so alien to the Chilean exploitative mentality, and ascribed all sorts of sinister motives to his actions. His legacy is an object lesson that has largely gone unheeded in the rest of Chile however.

Bottom line, according to Mosciattii, and with which I agree, is that although Chileans often declare how much they love Chile, the truth is that they don’t care for it at all. If they did, they would have looked after it better.They don’t deserve this wonderful country.