WikiHome

Chile: Forest Resources, Forest Types,

Forest Retention, Current Issues, and Forest Protection

Miguel Espinosa and Eduardo Acuña

Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de Concepción

Concepción, Chile

Due to its geographic characteristics, Chile possesses a unique natural vegetation that is extended from north to south and from east to west, most of them concentrated in the far south. In addition to the native forests, the country started to build up early in the last century a new type of forest based on exotic plantations, which constitute today the basis of the exports of the forestry sector. The main characteristics of the country and its vegetation, their distribution and the weight of the sector in the national economy, are presented.

Country Description

Chile is a tri-continental country with territory in South America, Antarctic, and Oceania. It is located in the south-east portion of South America, between 17°30’S y 56°30’S. Chile borders to the north with Peru, to the east with Argentina and Bolivia, to the south with the South Pole, and to the west with the Pacific Ocean. Chile’s continental surface area is 756,096 km². It is a long, narrow country with a length of 4300 km and an average width of 170 km (IGM 2003). Administratively, it is divided into 15 regions. Its population is 15.1 million habitants (INE 2003). Given its length, it presents a great diversity of environments, from deserts in the north to template rain forests in the south; five macro-regions can be distinguished be certain climate and geographical similarities (Figure 1). Three morphological units can be identified in the Chilean landscape: the Andes Mountains, the Coastal Mountains, and the longitudinal valley located between the two mountain ranges. In the northern region, almost entirely desert, the temperatures are moderate due to the Humboldt Current. The central region is characterized as presenting a template Mediterranean climate with precipitations concentrated in the winter months and which do not surpass 400 mm. The rains increase in the meridian direction, coinciding with a colder climate, principally in the extreme south, where annual precipitations can surpass 5000 mm (ODEPA 2005).

Land Use

Of Chile’s total continental surface area, 21% is covered by plantations and natural forests, and the rest is distributed between agriculture (5%), prairies and matorral (27%), vegetation-free areas (33%), wetlands (6%) and other uses (8%) (INFOR 2005). Nineteen percent of the surface area is protected under the National System of Protected Wild Areas, in which natural forests represent only 29% and are located fundamentally in the southern region (from 44°S). The surface area covered with forests consists of 13.5 million hectares of natural forests and 2.1 million hectares in plantations. The natural forests are concentrated in southern Chile from about 40°S, while the plantations are concentrated preferably between 36° and 39°S (Figure 2).

Natural Forests

Chilean natural forests –classified as template forests– given their ample latitudinal range are composed of species adapted to dry climates, like the Chilean palm (Jubaea chilensis) and sclerophyll forests, in central-northern Chile; by pre-historic araucaria (Araucaria araucana) and alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) forests in the central-southern area (37° to 40°S); and template rain forests in the south, adapted to humid, cold climates (40° to 55°S). These forests represent approximately a third of the relatively virgin template forests in the world (Bryant et al. 1997). Indeed, Chile possesses close to 25% of the world’s template rain forests and the second largest area of coastal template rain forests, after the Pacific Northwest coastal area, which extends from northern California to south-eastern Alaska (Wilcox 1996).

Planted Forests

At the beginning of the 20^th century, the landscape of central-southern Chile gradually came to be occupied by exotic species, principally radiata pine (Pinus radiata D. Don); and at the end of the 1980s, with species from the Eucalyptus genus. The production and artificial establishment of plants began in Chile at the time of national independence. The genus Populus was introduced from Mendoza, Argentina, in 1810 (Bernath 1940); in 1823 Eucalyptus globulus (Navarro 1961), and radiata pine were introduced from California in 1885 (Pastor 1936, Bernath 1940); and near 1890, Pseudotsuga menziesii and other species that are located principally in parks and gardens were introduced (Anonymous 1918). At the beginning of the 1970s, the planted surface area surpassed 300,000 hectares (Valenzuela 1984), due to the tax deductions contemplated in the Forest Law of 1931 (DFL 265), considered the first forestry law to promote its development in Chile. In 1974, the Forestry Development Law (DL 701), which subsidizes forestation, administration and management activities, was decreed and providing a new impetus to this sector’s development. Together with this law, a management strategy was implemented that reduced State participation, transferring industrial capacity and forestry land to the private sector. In this way, the annual planting rates, on average less than 10 thousand hectares between 1930 and 1970, increased to more than 80 thousand in the decades following the law (Valenzuela 1984, INFOR 2005) (Figure 3). In 2004, the surface area planted is 2.1 million hectares (1.4 million are radiata pine and 0.5 million are eucalypts) (INFOR 2005), preferentially occupying eroded land that is marginal to agricultural and livestock activity

The Forest Sector in the National Economy

The Chilean forest sector, which includes silviculture, wood extraction, and industrial activities like wood elaboration and cellulose and paper production, constitutes the second most important component of the Chilean economy. In 2004, this sector contributed to 11% of Chilean exportations (Figure 4), surpassing four times the values produced in the 1960s (INFOR 2005). In the more than 150 products generated, pulp, sawn wood, roundwood, and woodships are the most important.

Of the 44 millions of m³ of wood used in 2004, 32.9 million m³ (72%) are used in industry and 12.3 million m³ (28%) as firewood. In the last 30 years, given the growth of this sector’s activities, the relation between wood used for industrial and firewood have increased from a 1-to-1 relation in 1975 to more than 4-to-1 relation at present. Of all the wood consumed, 80% (more than 35.5 million m³) comes from plantations and the remaining 20% from natural forests. Firewood is the principal use (85%, equivalent to 7.5 million m³) for wood from natural forests (INFOR 2005).

References

Anonymous. 1918. Catálogo General N° V. Criadero de árboles Santa Inés. Santiago, Chile. 481 pp.

Bernath, E. 1940. El cultivo del pino, el álamo y el eucalipto. Zíg-Zag. Santiago, Chile. 184 pp.

Bryant, D, D. Nielsen and L. Tangley. 1997. Last frontier forests: Ecosystems and economies on the edge. World Resources Institute. Washington DC. 42 pp.

DFL 265. 1931. Decreto con Fuerza de Ley 265. Diario Oficial de la República de Chile. 26 de mayo de 1931. Santiago, Chile.

IGM. 2003. Espacio terrestre y marítimo de Chile. Instituto Geográfico Militar (Chile). Escala 1:20.000.000. Proyección azimutal equidistante. Santiago, Chile.

INE. 2003. Censo 2002. Síntesis de resultados. Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (Chile). Available at: http://www.ine.cl/cd2002/sintesiscensal.pdf.

INFOR. 2005. Estadísticas forestales 2004. Boletín Estadístico 101. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 159 pp.

Navarro, A. 1961. O eucalipto.2a ed. Companhia Paulista de Estradas de Ferro. Sao Paulo, Brasil. 667 pp.

ODEPA. 2005. Panorama de la agricultura chilena/Chilean agriculture overview. Oficina de Estudios y Políticas Agrarias. Ministerio de Agricultura (Chile). Santiago, Chile. Available at: http://www.odepa.gob.cl/servicios-informacion/panorama/Panorama2005.pdf.

Pastor, V. 1936. El Pinus insignis. Cartilla Forestal. La Nación. Santiago, Chile. 65 pp.

Valenzuela, P. 1984. Contribución del sector forestal a la economía nacional. pp 188-199 En: Actas XI Jornadas Forestales. Concepción, Chile.

Wilcox, K. 1996. Chile’s native forests: A conservation legacy. Ancient Forests Internacional. Redway, California, USA. 148 pp.

Chilean Forest Types

Introduction

Chile’s forestry resources can be divided in two principal formations: (i) a large surface area of natural forests (13.4 million hectares) –composed principally by endemic species – which are concentrated in mountainous regions, and especially in the Andes Mountains, at latitudes above 39°S and (ii) a smaller extension of plantations of non-native species (2.1 million hectares), established in central-southern Chile, between 34º and 41°S. The natural forests have been classified in 12 forest types according to the predominant species and their geographic location. This section provides information on the principal characteristics and surface of natural forests and plantations existing in Chile, the substitution of natural forests with plantations, and the dichotomy between the surface area of each resources and their contribution to the Chilean economy.

Forests Types

Chilean natural forests, which are located in both the Andes Mountains and the Coastal Mountains, have developed within eight eco-regions that are differentiated for their climatic characteristics and floristic composition (Gajardo 1994). Within these macro-regions, 12 forest types can be identified (Donoso 1981), and these can be present to two or more eco-regions This natural forest classification has been incorporated into Chilean forestry legislation and formed the base of the evaluation of the native vegetation resourcesperformed by the State Forest Service (CONAF et al. 1999). The criteria to determine the forestry type is based principally on floristic structure and composition of the forest’s dominant strata.

The forest types with the greatest surface area are Evergreen with 4.1 million hectares and Lenga with 3.4 millions, covering more than 55% of the surface area of natural forests (INFOR 2005a) (Table 1). The species of Nothofagus, which include some of the most demanded species due to their wood’s value, such as raulí (N. alpina), are present in the majority of the forest types and are the dominant species in many cases. Within the ample variety of native forest species, the majority hardwood, there are nine conifers, represented fundamentally by four forest types in which the dominant species provides the type denomination. These types are: Ciprés de la Cordillera (Austrocedrus chilensis), Araucaria (Araucaria araucana), Alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) and Ciprés de las Guaitecas (Pilgerodendrum uviferum) (Table 1).

Table 1. Forest types (from north to south) for Chilean native forests

Forest type1	Location	Surface area2 (ha)	Dominant and associated species
Esclerófilo	Coastal Mountain Range: 30º50'S to 36º30'S. Central Valley: 30º50'S to 37º50'S. Andean Mountain Range: 32º00'S to 38º00'S.	403.417	Espino (Acacia caven) with quillay (Quillaja saponaria), maitén (Maytenus boaria) and litre (Lithraea caustica).
Palma chilena	Isolated Populations around at 34º30'S.	673,2	Palma chilena (Jubaea chilensis) with litre, peumo (Cryptocarya alba), quillay, espino, boldo (Peumus boldus) and maitén.
Roble – Hualo	Coastal Mountain Range: 32º50'S to 36º30'S Andean Mountain Range: 34º30'S to 36º50'S.	184.359	Roble (Nothofagus obliqua) and hualo (Nothofagus glauca) with peumo, maitén, quillay, litre, avellano (Gevuina avellana) and radal (Lomatia hirsuta).
Ciprés de la cordillera	Found in non-contiguous populations in the Andean Mountain Range from 34º35'S to 44º00'S.	46.526	Ciprés de la cordillera (Austrocedrus chilensis) with peumo, litre, boldo, maitén and quillay.
Roble-Raulí-Coihue	Andean and Coastal Mountain ranges between 36º30'S and 40º30'S.	1.446.043	Roble, raulí (Nothofagus alpina) and coihue (Nothofagus dombeyi) with tepa (Laureliopsis philippiana) mañío de hojas cortas (Saxegothaea conspicua), lenga (Nothofagus pumilio) and arrayán (Luma apiculata).
Lenga	Found from 36º50'S to 56º00'S and at the altitudinal vegetation limit in the Andean Mountain Range up to at 45º00'S.	3.391.421	Lenga with coihue, roble, araucaria (Araucaria araucana), ñirre (Nothofagus antarctica) and coihue de Magallanes (Nothofagus betuloides).
Araucaria	Found in non-contiguous populations in the Coastal Mountain Range from 37º40'S to 38º40'S. Andean Mountain Range: 37º27'S to 40º48'S.	261.083	Araucaria with coihue, roble, ñirre (Nothofogus antarctica), canelo (Drimys winterii) and lenga.
Coihue-Raulí-Tepa	Coastal Mountain Range: 38º00'S to 40º30'S. Andean Mountain Range: 37º00'S to 40º30'S.	562.593	Coihue, raulí and tepa with trevo (Dasyphyllum diacanthoides), tineo (Weinmannia trichosperma) and olivillo (Aextoxicon punctatum).
Siempreverde	Coastal Mountain Range: 38º30'S to 47º00'S. Andean Mountain Range: 40º30'S to 47º00'S.	4.138.536	Tepa, luma (Amomyrtus luma), canelo and tineo.
Alerce	Found in non-contiguous populations in the Coastal Mountain Range from 39º50'S to 41º15'S and in the Andean Mountain Range from 40º00'S to 43º30'S.	260.976	Alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) with coihue de Magallanes, canelo, coihue de Chiloé (Nothofagus nitida), mañío de hojas punzantes (Podocarpus nubigenus), mañio de hojas cortas and tepa.
Ciprés de las Guaitecas	From 40º00'S to 54º00'S.	970.326	Ciprés de las Guaitecas (Pilgerodendron uviferum) with coihue de Chiloé, mañío de hojas punzantes, coihue de Magallanes and canelo.
Coihue de Magallanes	From 47º00'S to 55º30'S.	1.791.860	Coihue de Magallanes with lenga, tineo, mañío de hojas punzantes, canelo and ciprés de las Guaitecas.
Total		13.457.141

Source: ¹Donoso (1981); ²INFOR (2005a)

Forest Cover

The vegetation survey identified the surface area of the existing native forests and plantations. A natural forest was considered to be a forest when the trees were higher than two meters and the crown coverage was greater than 25%. The native forests are differentiated according to their structure and coverage: mature forests (primary forest with a fundamentally unevenaged structure), secondary forests (forest origin due to natural or anthropic disturbance), matured-secondary forests (mixture due to forest intervention) and sub-alpine forests (low growth forest – with heights below eight meters – due to limiting environmental conditions).

Of the 13.4 million hectares of native forest, 44% correspond to mature forest, 27% to secondary forest, 6.4% to adult-secondary forest, and the remaining 22.6% to sub-alpine forests (INFOR 2005a) (Table 2). When the protected areas (in areas with slopes above 45% according to actual legislation), the sub-alpine forests, and the forest types with banned logging (Araucaria y Alerce), the forests with species classified as in danger of extinction or vulnerable (Ciprés de la Cordillera, Ciprés de las Guaitecas, Roble-Hualo) (UICN 2001), and the forests with prohibition of substitution (Esclerofilo) are excluded, the potentially productive surface area is 4.7 million hectares (Table 2). However, the net effective surface area should be less if one excludes as well the forests with difficult access, are close to water courses, occupy fragile soils, or have been strongly altered.

Close to 65% of the surface area covered with secondary forests present productive potential (Table 2). These forests, given their origin and their lower structural complexity in general, are quite similar to plantations and present development and accessibility conditions that facilitate their management. A large part of the secondary forests consist of valuable Nothofagus species, which have perpetuated due to their pioneer characteristic (Coihue), coppicing capacity, and gap regeneration strategy, forming in many cases pure stands that today constitute an important resource if commercially managed.

The planted forests represent 21% of the forest coverage in Chile. Of the total plantation coverage, 68% are radiata pine and 23.5% are species from the Eucalyptus genus; the remaining 8.5% include among other species Tamarugo (Prosopis tamarugo), Douglas-fir and Populus sp. The surface area where native forest and plantations are mixed (mixed forests) cover only 86,000 ha (0.6% of the total). (Table 2).

Table 2. Surface area by forest type, structure, protection and productive.

Forest Type	Surface Area
	(ha)
Native Forest	Forest according to structure**	Forest in protected areas1*	Protected forest2*	Productive Forest
Adult forest	5.976.711	1.809.430	2.330.983	1.836.298
Secondary forest	3.596.923	551.536	687.015	2.358.372
Adult-secondary forest	865.102	152.367	162.250	550.485
Subalpine forest	3.018.404	1.385.861	1.632.543	0
Subtotal	13.457.141	3.899.194	4.812.791	4.745.155
Plantations
Radiata pine	1.408.430
Eucalypts	489.603
Others	180.614
Subtotal	2.078.647
Mixed forest	86.408
Total	15.622.196

¹ Surface area of National Parks, National Reserves and Natural Monuments.

² Surface area of forest in slopes greater than 45%. Since there is no disaggregated information and to facilitate calculations, the surface area for the forest types Alerce, Araucaria, Ciprés de la Cordillera, Ciprés de las Guaitecas and Esclerofilo forests are considered to the values for adult forests after excluding the values for forests in protected areas). Similarly, the surface areas for the sub-alpine forests were calculated by considering the values not included in protected areas or in slopes greater than 45%.

Source: * CONAF et al. (1999); ** INFOR (2005a)

The different forest types are located throughout the Chilean territory, according to their existence and environmental condition characteristics, and the degree of human intervention. The natural forests are fundamentally found in the far south of Chile, south of 39° latitude, and correspond to 82% of native forest coverage. The forest types Siempreverde and Lenga are concentrated in more than 90% in this area, and 100% of forest types Coihue de Magallanes, Ciprés de las Guaitecas and Alerce (Table 1).

Ownership Regimen and Timber Supply

The native forests are generally privately owned. Land ownership is distributed in the following manner: 67% are owned by small and medium landowners, 4% are larger land owners, and 29% are State property under protection of the National System of Protected Wild Areas (INFOR 2005c). In contrast, the State virtually does not own plantations, and the principal land owners are industrial companies. Indeed, 70% of the radiata pine plantations and 75% of the eucalypt forests are owned by large companies, with the remaining plantations owned by small and medium land owners (INFOR 2005b,c; MINAGRI 2006). More than 50% of the plantations property pertains to two holdings: Arauco and CMPC (Arauco 2006; CMPC 2006).

The relation between the surface area occupied by native forest and by forest plantation does not represent the contribution of either resource to the supply of wood products, which is the only productive value considered in national accounts. Of the total wood consumed by industrial use -44 million m³ in 2004-, 98% comes from plantations and the remaining 2% to native forests, where 61% of the native forest contribution corresponds to firewood and 39% sawn wood (INFOR 2005a).

The small contribution of native forests to the national economy is the result of a long process of resource degradation and fragmentation (Neira et al. 2002), and its gradual replacement by prime material coming from plantations. The principal causes of this situation are selective logging (i.e. logging method by which same of the tree of high commercial value are extracted without silvicultural criteria), illegal logging, forest fires, agriculture habilitation, and the substitution of natural forests with plantations, where the last one is the most controversial.

Forest Substitution

Although nobody discusses the impact of the substitution on the decline of native forests, the figures differ with respect to its magnitude. Unda and Ravera (1994) estimate the decline at 132 thousand hectares in the period of 1960-1990 and Emanuelli (1996) estimates it at 140 thousand hectares for the period of 1985-1994, where both are national studies. These values represent 3% and 15% of the planted surface area in the first and second cases, respectively (INFOR 2005a). Studies centered between 35° and 37° southern latitude for the 1978-1987 period indicate that 10% of the planted surface area occurred in areas previously covered by secondary forests, which represented 9.2% of the existing native forest (Lara et al. 1989). Echeverria et al. (2006) found for the area between 35° and 36° southern latitude that 53% of the native forest had been substituted by plantations in the period 1975-2000, an area that preferentially corresponds to the Coastal Mountains. These studies present important differences in the methodologies used, the area and time period studied, the definition of forest, and the differentiation between forest and shrub, making it difficult to be precise on the real dimension of the substitution phenomenon.

References

Arauco. 2006. Inversionistas: Antecedentes económicos. Available at: http://www.arauco.cl/imagenes/antecedentes2005_02.jpg

Donoso, C. 1981. Tipos forestales de los bosques nativos de Chile. En: Investigación y

Desarrollo Forestal. CONAF, Documento de Trabajo Nº 30. Santiago, Chile. 70 pp.

CMPC. 2006. El árbol: plantaciones forestales en Chile. Compañía Manufacturera de Papeles y Cartones. Available at: http://www.papelnet.cl/arbol/plantaciones_forestales.htm.

CONAF, CONAMA, BIRF. 1999. Catastro y evaluación de los recursos vegetacionales nativos de Chile. Informe nacional con variables ambientales. Corporación Nacional Forestal/Comisión Nacional del Medioambiente/Banco Internacional de Reconstrucción y Fomento. Santiago, Chile. 88 pp.

Echeverria, C., D. Coomes, S. Salas, J.M Rey-Benayas,. A. Lara and A. Newton. 2006. Rapid deforestation and fragmentation of Chilean Temperate Forests. Biological Conservation 130(4): 481-494.

Emanuelli, P. 1996. Bosque nativo, antecedentes estadísticos 1985-1994. Corporación Nacional Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 22 pp.

INFOR. 2005a. Estadísticas forestales 2004. Boletín Estadístico 101. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 159 pp.

INFOR. 2005b. Estudio de disponibilidad de pino radiata: 2003-2032. Instituto Forestal. Available at: www.infor.cl/webinfor/publicaciones/Documentos_2005/disponibilidad_marzo05.pdf.

INFOR. 2005c. El sector forestal chileno en una mirada. Instituto Forestal. Available at: http://www.infor.cl/webinfor/publicaciones/Documentos_2005/sector_forestal_chileno_una_mirada.pdf.

Gajardo, R. 1994. La vegetación natural de Chile. Editorial Universitaria. Santiago, Chile. 165 pp.

Lara, A., L. Araya, J. Capella, M. Fierro y A. Cavieres. 1989. Evaluación de la destrucción y disponibilidad de los recursos forestales en la VII y VIII Región. Informe Técnico CODEFF. Santiago, Chile.

MINAGRI. 2006. Memoria 2000-2006. Ministerio de Agricultura. Santiago, Chile. 152 pp.

Neira, E., H. Verscheure and C. Revenga. 2002. Chile's frontier forests: conserving a global treasure. Available at: http://pdf.wri.org/gfw_chile_full.pdf.

UICN. 2001. Categorías y criterios de la lista roja de la UICN: Versión 3.1. Comisión de Supervivencia de Especies de la UICN. The World Conservation Union. Cambridge, Reino Unido. 33 pp.

Unda, A. y F. Ravera. 1994. Análisis histórico de sitios de establecimiento de las plantaciones forestales en Chile. Instituto Forestal. Unidad de Medio Ambiente. Santiago, Chile. 130 pp.

Forest Retention

Introduction

During most of the 20^th century, the Chilean forestry sector was based in the use of natural forests, even when there was an important surface area planted with radiata pine fundamentally for pulp production. In the last few decades, and coinciding with the dominant innovation within the international forestry industry, this sector’s economic development has been oriented towards plantations. State incentives to plant forests for industrial wood production together with the application of modern management and resource exploitation practices have reduced the demand for natural forest products. Additionally, society has developed a new perspective on natural forests, one that is more related to ecological values than with production goals. The present section describes the evolution in silvicultural practices applicable to native and exotic forestry resources, the actual state of development of forestry management in Chile, and the legal framework.

Natural Forests

Since colonial times, human efforts have intervened in native forests, transforming the land for agriculture and cattle-raising use and wood extraction. High-grading, consisting in the extraction of the best and biggest individuals in the forest, was a common practice that degraded extensive surface areas. Indiscriminate cutting and forest fires destroyed a large part of Chilean forests, resulting in large surface areas of second growth forests. After the Forest Development Law was decreed in 1974 (DL 701), native forest exploitation was reduced, and plantations of rapidly growing exotic species began to be intensely developed. Actually, more than 90 % of industrial wood consumption comes from these plantations (INFOR 2005).

This development was facilitated by DL 701, which in addition to regulating, providing incentives, and promoting plantation establishment, it also incorporated the obligation to present a forest management plan prior to intervention. The standards required in a management plan are defined in the General Regulation of DL 701, and they determine the possible types of cuts depending on the slope and forest type (DS 259 1980). In 1994, Chilean Environmental Law (Ley sobre Bases Generales del Medio Ambiente) began to require the presentation of an Environmental Impact Study when the intervened surface area exceeds a certain extension: 20 hectares in northern Chile, 200 hectares in central Chile, and 500 hectares in central-southern Chile, and 1000 hectares in far southern Chile (Ley 19300 1994). However, in contrast to the incentives for plantations, there is no legislation that regulates or promotes native forest management even though a legislation project was presented in 1992.

The silvicultural systems applicable to different forest types include clearcut, seed tree, protection and selection (Smith et al. 1997). The first two systems who imply a greater degree of forest intervention, are applicable to the Roble-Hualo and Roble-Rauli-Coihue forest types on slopes less than 45%, and in both cases a minimum of 3000 plants/ha of the same species homogenously distributed must be established. The protection and selection systems are applicable to most of the forest types, and a minimum of 3000 plants/ha is required in all cases (Table 3) (DS 259 1980).

Even when the actual legislation contemplates the application of the described silvicultural systems, there are few examples of their application and are generally concentrated in the wood production. They do not incorporate an ecosystemic perspective to provide a variety of services and benefits, in addition to wood, that can be obtained from these forests.

Table 3. Silviculture systems applied to the different forestry types.

Silvicultural systems

Forest types*

Clearcut

Seed tree

Protection

Selection

Slope (%)

<45

45-60

>60

<45

45-60

>60

<45

45-60

>60

<45

45-60

>60

Esclerófilo

x

x

x

Palma chilena

x

x

x

Roble – Hualo

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

Ciprés de la Cordillera

x

x

x

x

x

Roble-Raulí-Coihue

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

Lenga

x

x

x

x

x

Coihue-Raulí-Tepa

x

x

x

x

x

x

Siempreverde

x

x

x

x

x

Ciprés de las Guaitecas

x

x

x

Coihue de Magallanes

x

x

x

x

x

* This does not include the Araucaria and Alerce forest types because they are classified as Natural Monuments.

Source: DS 259 (1980).

Planted Forests

As indicated earlier, the DL 701 triggered the massive establishment of radiata pine plantations, and to lesser extent plantations with species from the Eucalyptus genus. Initially, a conservative silviculture was practiced with radiata pine, with plants produced as a bared root system coming from small, seasonal nurseries. Usually, the soil was not prepared, fertilized, or controlled for weeds. The plants were established in holes at a density of 2000 to 2500 plants/ha, independently of the site conditions and production objectives; thinning –if practiced- was late and of low intensity; the trees were not pruned. The heterogeneity of plantation material and the low level of soil preparation resulted in reduced initial survival rates and in the necessity of replanting during two or three consecutive seasons. Consequently, research was begun to overcome the described problems, and many elements, concepts, and principles used to manage this species in New Zealand were adopted and adapted (Espinosa et al. 1990).

At present, the pine plantations are usually established in densities of 1100 plants/ha with genetically improved material coming from highly technical nurseries. Additionally, the soil is prepared, undesired vegetation is controlled, and the soil is fertilized. The trees are pruned up to 5-6 m in height in successive stages. The trees are thinned early on to produce knot-free wood. The trees are commercially thinned at 12-14 years of age, depending on site quality, and are harvested a 22-26 years of age, obtaining volumes between 400 and 600 m³ ha^-1 (Fundación Chile 2005). The final harvest is clearcut, and reforestation of the area is obligatory in the next season.

With respect to the plantations of species of the Eucalyptus genus, which were initially managed as coppicing for their use in vegetable charcoal production and mines, acquired greater importance as prime material for the cellulose industry at the end of the 1980s and the planted surface increased substantially, especially with the species Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens. In the last five years, the annual plantation of these species has experienced greater growth than radiata pine (Figure 5) (INFOR 2005).

The plantations with eucalypts species, as with radiata pine, are intensively managed in 10-14 year rotations for use in cellulose pulp production, achieving harvest volumes between 300 and 400 m³ ha^-1 (Fundación Chile 2003). These species are usually established in better quality soils than used with radiata pine, where E. nitens occupies areas with higher altitudes than E. globulus due to its resistance to colder temperatures. Given the permanent changes in the wood market and to obtain greater economic returns, production has been diversified by obtaining saw lumber and veeniers. This new orientation implies early pruning and thinning with the harvest of these stands about 18 years of age (Muñoz et al. 2005). Both species are clearcut harvested with the obligation of reforesting the harvested area in the next season.

References

DL 701. 1974. Decreto Ley 701. Diario oficial de la República de Chile. 28 de octubre de 1974. Santiago, Chile.

DS 259. 1980. Decreto Supremo 259. Diario oficial de la República de Chile. 30 de octubre de 1980. Santiago, Chile.

Espinosa, M., R. Escobar y F. Drake. 1990. Silvicultura de las plantaciones forestales en Chile: pasado, presente y futuro. Agro-Ciencia 6(2): 131-144.

Fundación Chile. 2003. Eucalyptus nitens: La nueva estrella del sector forestal. Lignum 67: 59-61.

Fundación Chile. 2005. Tablas auxiliares de producción. Simulador de árbol individual para pino radiata (Pinus radiata D. Don): Arquitectura de copa y calidad de madera. Proyecto Fondef D01/1021. Concepción, Chile. 100 pp.

INFOR. 2005. Estadísticas forestales 2004. Boletín Estadístico 101. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 159 pp.

Ley 19300. 1994. Diario oficial de la República de Chile. 9 de marzo de 1994. Santiago, Chile.

Muñoz, F., M. Espinosa, M.A. Herrera y J. Cancino. 2005. Características del crecimiento en diámetro, altura y volumen de una plantación de Eucalyptus nitens sometida a tratamientos silvícolas de poda y raleo. Bosque 26(1): 93-99.

Smith, D., B. Larson, M. Kelty and P. Ashton. 1997. The practice of silviculture. Applied forest ecology. 9th. ed. John Wiley and Sons. New York, USA. 560 pp.

Current Issues

Introduction

The boom experienced by the forestry sector in Chile in the last few decades, principally based in the expansion of radiata pine and to a lesser extent on eucalypts plantations, has meant that a large part of the produced wood comes from these plantations and that production is oriented towards foreign markets. Indeed, the sector has slowly become relevant within the Chilean economy as the second most important in income generation and is now highly competitive at the international level. To maintain its competitiveness, the Chilean forestry sector has had to adapt rapidly to the changing circumstances: globalization, opening to new markets, new trade agreements, and especially greater environmental social consciousness. Additionally, the consistent development of the sector based in planted forests has also had to face certain local problems and challenges. This section summarizes the principal concerns facing the Chilean forestry sector grouped into four general areas: i) legal and institutional framework, ii) territorial aspects, iii) indigenous populations, and iv) environmental concerns.

Legal and institutional framework

Native forests participate marginally in the generation of wood products, playing instead a role principally related to conservation and as a sustainer for diverse ecosystemic services. In contrast to the commercial plantations promoted and regulated by the DL 701 (1974), which receive a State subsidy, there is no legislation that promotes sustainable native forest management. Distinct initiatives have been proposed, but no legislation has been approved. For example, in 1992, the government at the time presented a project whose objective was to provide a regulatory framework for native forest management, protection and recovery. Still, it was only in 2005 that a legislation project was approved (BCN 2005), and its approval as a Law is still pending.

Even though important forestry sector, environmental and governmental organizations participated in the design of this legislation project, a series of aspects still generate controversy. Among the most important are: i) the lack of an ecosystemic perspective that integrates the biological components and the bio-physical processes together with the social and economic aspects (FORECOS 2003); ii) that the resources used for subsidies should promote conservation of biological diversity as well as providing incentives for native forest management oriented to ecosystemic services and goods; iii) the possibility of commercializing dead wood from declared ‘Natural Monument’ species, such as alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides) and araucaria (Araucaria araucana), which can result in illegal cutting and intentional fires in order to obtain authorization to use this wood, and iv) the substitution of the sclerophyle forests on hills that do not have southern exposure or with crown coverage below 30%. This last point refers to a forest type with characteristics unique in the world and has been recognized as one of the 25 hotspots for world biodiversity (Myers et al. 2000). It presently covers a surface area of only 403 mil ha between 30º50'S and 38º00'S (INFOR 2005), occupying a transition zone between the xerophitic vegetation in the north and the forests in the south, surrounded by an expanding horticulture and fruit production that competes for land use.

Considering these factors, it is clear why legal and regulatory frameworks that allow an adequate management of native forest resources are required in the short term. As a result, the approval and implementation of the mentioned native forest legislation project is urgent.

Territorial Aspects

Comparatively Chile possesses one of the highest forest protection indexes in the world under the State Protected Forestry Areas System (SNASPE) with 29% coverage (3.9 million ha); of this area, more than 80% are concentrated south of parallel 39. As a result, the protected surface area is insufficient to shelter and protect the ample ecological and structural diversity of Chilean native ecosystems, which range from deserts in the north, to rainforests and lakes in the south, and steppes and glaciers of the extreme southern zone. The biological diversity in Chile presents special characteristics, recognized by international conservation organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund (Dinerstein et al. 1995), due to the existence of unique species and ecosystems and territories with great global ecological value (Davis et al. 1997).

One strategy to maintain, protect, and restore forests, as signaled by Luebert and Becerra (1998), is to expand the protected area network to assure ecological representation of all the forest types, which in Chile is highly variable. For example, the Araucaria forest type is represented in 48.4%, while the Sclerophyle forest type is only represented in 2% (Table 4). Furthermore, the SNASPE does not include any critical native forest area that is in danger of disappearing, not even the coastal forests situated between 35° and 40°S (Armesto et al. 1995), area in which the highest proportion of wood species are concentrated (Villagrán et al.1993). Only a fraction of the species and ecosystems that need protection are represented in the SNASPE (Simonetti 2000), and indeed the extension of some SNASPE protected areas seem to be insufficient for maintaining the populations of the threatened species (Neira et al. 2002). Given that more than 70% of the native forest is private property (MINAGRI 2006), a combined effort between the State and the private sector is required to conserve and protect this resource.

Table 4. Native forest area by forest type and percentage included in SNASPE.

Forest type*	Native Forest Surface Area (ha)			Within SNASPE (%)
	Total*	SNASPE**
Esclerófilo	403,417		6,836	1.7
Roble-Hualo	184,359		886	0.5
Ciprés de la Cordillera	46,526		2,866	6.2
Roble-Raulí-Coihue	1,446,043		40,796	2.8
Lenga	3,391,421		561,092	16.5
Araucaria	261,083		122,709	47.0
Coihue-Raulí-Tepa	562,593		95,052	16.9
Siempreverde	4,138,536		1,424,975	34.4
Alerce	260,976		46,238	17.7
Ciprés de las Guaitecas	970,326		678,380	69.9
Coihue de Magallanes	1,791,860		906,052	50.6
TOTAL	13,457,141		3,885,882	28.9

Source: *INFOR (2005). ** CONAF et al. (1999).

Indigenous populations

The controversy associated to land ownership is a recurrent theme since forestry plantations were established in areas that indigenous communities claim as ancestral territory. Within the wide distribution range of plantations, this dispute is centered principally in the region with the highest concentration of planted forests: the central-southern zone, especially between 37° and 39°S. This problem began in the 19^th Century with colonization, which implied continuous losses in land controlled by the Mapuche ethnic (DIBAM 2004). In addition to land loss, the Mapuche have had to face the problems of discrimination and poverty, which remain an important issue.

In recent decades, the Chilean State has sought to solve the land property issue by acquiring these lands through the National Corporation of Indigenous Development (CONADI). Currently, this public institution has acquired more than 200,000 ha, which have been transferred to local indigenous communities (CONADI 2006). Efforts of integration between the indigenous communities and forest companies, with the support of the government, have been one of the ways to find integral solutions to this problem, whose unsuspected repercussions can affect the industrial development and discourage new investments.

Environmental Concerns

As the Chilean forestry sector grows and its exporting vocation consolidates, it has had to face new and growing challenges, especially to reduce the negative environmental effects associated with the establishment, management, production and commercialization of its products. Consequently, the forestry sector has had to consider not only Chilean environmental standards, but increasingly it has had to consider the numerous and specific standards required by external markets and the increasingly influential environmental groups. Additionally, the growing environmental consciousness of consumers now requires products that not only satisfy quality standards, but also environmental and social standards.

In response, the forestry sector has voluntarily certified the productive chain. Actually, 91% of the forestry plantations are certified, contrasting with the native forests where only 48,000 ha are certified (INFOR 2005). This strategy implies adopting a series of environmental protection measures that strongly impact in the industrial processes of the forestry sector, such as the limitation on the use of chlorate products in the cellulose whitening process, discharge treatment, and its subsequent elimination into the ocean. Still, even with the improvements incorporated into the industrial production processes, a large part of the negative externalities associated with the cellulose industry were not corrected. The temporary closing of new cellulose plant in Valdivia due to its impact on a nearby Natural Sanctuary and the cautious measures taken with the initiation of the new cellulose plant in Nueva Aldea, located in the principal forestry region in Chile, are clear examples of how a greater environmental consciousness in Chile and the environmental institutions have impacted in the forestry sector. Another example of impact is the series of agreement, including one to not replace native forests with plantations, made by the two principal forestry companies in Chile, CMPC and Arauco, with the environmental organizations Forest Ethics, Greenpeace and Defensores del Bosque Chileno (Defenders of the Chilean Forest) among others (Forest Ethics 2006).

Even when it is clear that the native forest is not an important actor in the production of tangible goods, it does play an important role in providing ecosystemic services such as watershed protection, water production, recreational fishing, salmon-raising, and hydroelectric generation. Almost 70% of Chile’s electric energy supply is generated by hydroelectric dams that are principally located in central Chile (CNE 2006). As a result, the conservation and sustainable management of the native forest are closely related to the production of hydroelectric energy, and this indirect forest use has an economic relevance beyond the energy sector. The construction of four hydroelectric dams in the Chilean Patagonia in an area covered with the highest concentration of relatively untouched native forests presents a dilemma for the conservation of this resource or its partial utilization for energy generation. Faced with uncertain energy supply, the hydroelectric dams that could be established in the Baker and Pascua Rivers are an alternative that would satisfy 33% of the energy deficit predicted for 2015 (ENDESA 2006). All social actors should participate in determining the best option to follow, one which will harmonize economic development and social well-being with environmental protection.

References

Armesto, J., R. Rozzi, y P. León-Lobos. 1995. Ecología de los bosques chilenos: síntesis y proyecciones. pp 405-421 In: Ecología de los bosques nativos de Chile. Armesto, J., C. Villagrán y M. Arroyo (Eds). Editorial Universitaria. Santiago, Chile.

BCN. 2005. Texto Proyecto de Ley sobre recuperación del bosque nativo y fomento forestal, November 2005. Available at: http://sil.congreso.cl/docsil/info6815.zip.

CNE. 2006. Unidades generadoras sistema interconectado central: mayo de 2006. Comisión Nacional de Energía. Available at: http://www.cne.cl/estadisticas/nacionales/electricidad/f_precio.html.

CONADI. 2006. Logros. Corporación Nacional de Desarrollo Indígena. Available at: http://www.conadi.cl/logros.htm.

CONAF, CONAMA, BIRF. 1999. Catastro y evaluación de los recursos vegetacionales nativos de Chile. Informe Nacional con Variables Ambientales. Santiago, Chile. 88 pp.

Davis, S.D., V.H. Heywood, O. Herrera MacBryde and A.C. Hamilton (Eds.). 1997. Centres of plant diversity: A guide and strategy for their conservation. Volume 3: The Americas. WWF and IUCN. London, UK.

DL. 701. 1974. Diario oficial de la República de Chile. 28 de octubre de 1974. Santiago, Chile.

DIBAM. 2004. Ocupación de la Araucanía (1860-1883). El fin de la autonomía territorial mapuche. Dirección de Bibliotecas, Archivos y Museos. Available at: http://www.memoriachilena.cl/mchilena01//temas/index.asp?id_ut=ocupaciondelaaraucaniaenelchilerepublicano(1860-1883).

Dinerstein, E., D. Olson, D. Graham, A. Webster, S. Primm, M. Bookbinder and G. Ledec. 1995. A conservation assessment of the terrestrial ecoregions of Latin America and the Caribbean. WWF/World Bank. Cambridge, U.K.

ENDESA. 2006. Endesa Chile acuerda incorporar al Grupo Matte en un nuevo proyecto hidroeléctrico de 2.400 MW. Available at: http://www.endesa.es.

FORECOS. 2003. Flora de Chile. Available at: http:// www.forecos.net/floradechile/Tipos_Forestales.htm.

Forest Ethics. 2006. Text of joint solutions project agreement. Available at: http://www.forestethics.org/html/eng/793.shtml.

INFOR. 2005. Estadísticas forestales 2004. Boletín Estadístico 101. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 159 pp.

Luebert, F. y P. Becerra. 1998. Representatividad vegetacional del Sistema Nacional de Áreas Silvestres Protegidas del Estado (SNASPE) en Chile. Ambiente y Desarrollo 14: 62-69.

MINAGRI. 2006. Memoria 2000-2006. Ministerio de Agricultura. Santiago, Chile. 152 pp.

Myers, N., R.A. Mittermeier, C.G. Mittermeier, G.A.B. da Fonseca and J. Kent. 2000. Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403 (24): 853-858.

Neira, E., H. Verscheure and C. Revenga. 2002. Chile's frontier forests: conserving a global treasure. Available at: http://pdf.wri.org/gfw_chile_full.pdf.

Simonetti, J. 2000. Diversidad biológica. pp 177-201 En: Informe país: el estado del medio ambiente en Chile-1999. Colección Sociedad Estado y Políticas Públicas. Centro de Análisis de

Políticas Públicas, Universidad de Chile. Santiago, Chile. 425 pp.

Villagrán, C., J. Varela, H. Fuenzalida, H. Veit, J. Armesto, J. Aravena y L. Hedin. 1993. Antecedentes geomorfológicos y vegetacionales para el análisis del Cuaternario de la Región de Los Lagos de Chile. pp 1-50 En: El Cuaternario de la Región de Los Lagos del sur de Chile.

Villagrán, C. (ed). Editorial Universitaria. Santiago, Chile.

Forest Protection

Introduction

Even though Chile -in ecological terms- is an island isolated by the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, it is not invulnerable to the introduction of pests and diseases from outside due to increased international trade of agricultural and forest products, exchange of plant materials, and long-range air travel. Additionally, Chile faces the risks associated with monoculture plantations, which now forms the base of the forest industry. This section provides a synopsis of the insects and pathogens as well as forest fires that affect natural and planted forests in Chile.

Pests in Natural Forests

Published information on fungi or other pathogens affecting Chilean natural forest species is scarce. Existing knowledge is specific and derives fundamentally from taxonomy studies (González and Opazo 2002). In native forests, there are numerous species of pathogens and parasites, which generally are in equilibrium with the system and do not constitute economically important problems. However, this equilibrium is disturbed from time to time by diverse abiotic factors, which would explain, for example, the population increase of the defoliating lepidopteron Ormiscodes cinnamomea recorded in 1986, and which affected thousands of hectares of Nothofagus forests (Veblen et al. 1996a). Nothofagus species are affected by the defoliator-wood borer complex of Subanguina chilensis, Holopterus chilensis and Cheloderus childreni and by the complex composed by the wood borer insect Gnathotrupes sp. and rotting fungi, undescribed, which causes sudden death in N. pumilio, N. dombeyi, N. betuloide and N. antarctica (Baldini and Aguayo 2005). The introduced aphids Cinara cupressi and C. cupressivora cause death in Austrocedrus chilensis forests (Sartori 2005).

Pests in Planted Forests

Chile’s geographic location and its distance from the natural habitats of radiata pine and species of the genus Eucalyptus have limited the introduction of pests and diseases that commonly affect these species. However, this “natural protection” has not been possible to maintain over time due to increased international commerce and goods exchange. Indeed, in the last decade, the entry of 11 forest pests was recorded (Ramírez and Goycoolea 2006).

Except for sporadic, local irruptions of native defoliating insects such as O. cinnamomea (Saturnidae), Antandrus viridis (Acrididae), Coniungoptera nothofagi (Tettiganiidae) and Bacunculus phyllopus (Pseudophasmatidae) (Lewis 1996), radiata pine pests correspond to introduced insects. In 1985, the insect Rhyacionia buoliana (European pine shoot moth), was detected in southern Chile, and it propagated rapidly throughout the distribution range of radiata pine plantations. In 1986, biological control using the larva’s parasites Orgilus obscurator and Trichogramma nerudai eggs’s parasites could control the pest in a bit more than 10 years (Ramírez and Goycoolea 2006). At present, biocontrol of this pest is now considered just another silvicultural practice used to manage this species’ plantations. This accumulated experience favored an early start in biocontrol of the wood borer wasp (Sirex noctilio), and the nematod Deladenus siricidicola, which sterilizes wasp females, was imported from Brazil early on. The first detection of S. noctilio was recorded at the Los Andes-Mendoza (33°S) and Osorno-Bariloche (41°S) mountain passes in 2001, and in the Pucón-Junín (39°S) pass in 2002. The program to eradicate S. noctilio from the northern area has been successful, maintaining the wasp in the southern area, where new detections have been reported (Figure 6) (González 2005, SAG 2006). The scolites Hylastes ater and Hylurgus ligniperda and the introduced aphids Eulachnus sp. and Essigella californica have been less troublesome.

A biocontrol strategy has also bee used to control eucalypts species pests. Anaphes nitens and Avetianella longoi, parasitoids of the eucalypts weevil (Gonipterus scutellatus) and the eucalypts wood borer (Phoracantha spp.), respectively, were imported from South Africa. Additionally, Psyllaephagus pilosus, aparasitoid of the eucalyptspsilid Ctenarytaina eucalypti,was imported from Peru, and Psyllaephagus bliteus, a biocontroller of Glycaspis brimblecombei, which principally affects red eucalypts species, was imported from Mexico. This insect was detected in 2002 in the Santiago International Airport (33°S), and is presently distributed between 33° to 39º south (Ide et al. 2006). The native insect Chilecomadia valdiviana appears as a problem in Eucalyptus nitens plantations (Cerda 1996).

Among the pathogens that affect radiata pine plantation growth at any stage of development, Sphaeropsis sapinea (tip blight) and Dothistroma septospora (pine needle blight) are often found, although opportune silvicultural management and chemical treatments have controlled its spread (Henríquez 1998). The entry of Fusarium circinatum (pine pitch canker), a fungus that infects radiata pine in both its natural and introduced habitat, especially in the nursery phase (Gordon et al. 2001) generated worry when it was reported in Chile in 2001 in radiata pine nurseries and clonal hedges in the area of Concepcion (37°S) (Wingfield et al. 2002). Subsequent monitoring has detected the fungus in only a few nurseries and clonal hedges within the entire plantation distribution area for this species. The pathogen has been reported in isolated form in plantations younger than three years, where the plants came from infected nurseries (SAG 2005). Fungal diseases in eucalypts are scarce, where defoliation associated with the Mycosphaerella species is the most frequent. Occasionally, cankers associated with Botryosphaeria ribis and recently with heart rotting appeared in managed E. nitens plantations.

Forest Fires

In Chile, practically all the forest fires are human caused due to negligence, carelessness, or intentional behavior. Fires generated by volcanic activity or electrical storms only occur in the upper mountains and the Patagonia, with a frequency of 270 and 900 years, respectively (Chandler et al. 1983, Huber and Markgraf 2003). The existence of species like Araucaria araucana, which grow in association with Nothofagus species, suggests that fire has been an important component in many Nothofagus ecosystems (Veblen et al. 1996b). Since colonization, however, fire frequency is approximately every 100 years in these forests (Veblen et al. 1998, Huber and Markgraf 2003, González et al. 2005).

In the central-southern area and coinciding with plantation expansion, the occurrence of forest fires has increased from less than 500 fires year ^-1 in the 1960s to more than 6500 fires at present (Figure 7), affecting on average a surface greater than 50000 ha each year (Infor 2005). Forest plantations generate a large, continuous, homogeneous combustible load, which facilitates fire propagation that is difficult to control. In the last two decades, large forest fires, greater than 80000 ha year^-1, are periodically recorded and are associated to drought and wind periods that create favorable conditions for fire ignition and propagation (Peña and Valenzuela 2004).

The Chilean Forest service controls the forest fires on land included in the National System of Protected Wildlife Areas, in native forests and on land owned by small and medium property holders, and controls the fire on commercial plantations in collaboration with the private sector.

References

Baldini A. and J. Aguayo. 2005. Impacto económico de plagas y enfermedades en el bosque nativo. In: Resumen y Conclusiones XX Silvotecna: Sanidad forestal en un mundo globalizado. November 7 and 8. Concepción, Chile. Available at: http://www.cormabiobio.cl/encuentro2005/Presentaciones/xxsilvotecna/aidabaldini.pdf.

Cerda, L. 1996. Chilecomadia valdiviana (Philippi) (Lepidoptera, Cossidae). Insecto taladrador de la madera asociado al cultivo del Eucalyptus spp. en Chile. Nota Técnica 16, No. 32.

Corporación Nacional Forestal, Depto. de Programas y Proyectos. Programa Protección Sanitaria Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 7 p.

Chandler, C., P. Cheney, P. Thomas, L. Trabaud and D. Williams. 1983. Fire in forestry. Vol. I: Forest fire behavior and effects. John Wiley and Sons. New York, USA. 450 p.

González, G. and A. Opazo. 2002. Enfermedades fungosa y otras. pp 89-199 En: Agentes de daño en el bosque nativo. Baldini, A. and L. Pancel (Eds). Editorial Universitaria. Santiago, Chile. 409 pp.

González, P. 2005. Situación de Sirex noctilio en Chile: Logros y alcances. In: Resumen y Conclusiones XX Silvotecna: Sanidad forestal en un mundo globalizado. November 7 and 8. Concepción, Chile. Available at: http://www.cormabiobio.cl/encuentro2005/Presentaciones/xxsilvotecna/pablogonzalez.pdf.

González, M., T. Veblen and J. Sibold. 2005. Fire history of Araucaria-Nothofagus forests in Villarrica National Park, Chile. Journal of Biogeography 32:1187-1202.

Gordon, T., A. Storer and D. Wood. 2001. The pitch canker epidemics in California. Plant Disease 85(11): 1128-1139.

Henríquez, A. 1998. Dendroclimatología del ataque de Dothistroma septospora sobre árboles jóvenes de Pinus radiata en la provincia de Valdivia. Forest Engineering Thesis. Universidad Austral de Chile. Valdivia, Chile. 51 p.

Huber, U. and V. Markgraf. 2003. European impact of fire regimes and vegetation dynamics at the steppe-forest ecotone of southern Patagonia. The Holocene 13(4):567-579.

Ide, S., C. Muñoz, M. Beéche, J. Mondaca, L. Jaques, P. González y C. Goycoolea. 2006. Detección y control biológico de Glycaspis brimblecombei MOORE (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero. Santiago, Chile. 32 p.

INFOR. 1999. Estadísticas forestales 1998. Boletin Estadístico 68. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 127 p.

INFOR. 2005. Estadísticas forestales 2004. Boletin Estadístico 101. Instituto Forestal. Santiago, Chile. 159 p.

Lewis, P. 1996. First record of the defoliating activity of two species of native insects on Pinus radiata D. Don in Chile. Bosque 17(1):101-103.

Peña, E. and L. Valenzuela. 2004. Incremento de la ocurrencia de incendios forestales en plantaciones y bosque natural de Chile. In 2º Symposium on fire economics planning and policy: a Global View. Córdoba, España. Abril de 2004.

Ramírez, O. and C. Goycoolea. 2006. Control biológico de plagas: una eficaz herramienta. Temas de Fondo 6(1): 1-4.

SAG. 2005. Informativo fitosanitario forestal N° 1. Available at: http://www2.sag.gob.cl/agricola/forestal/Informativo_1.pdf.

SAG. 2006. Informativo fitosanitario forestal N° 3. Available at: http://www.sag.gob.cl/pls/portal/docs/PAGE/PG_SAG_BIBLIOTECA/BIBL_BOLETINES/INFORMATIVO_FORESTAL_3.PDF.

Sartori, A. 2005. Análisis de la situación de Cinara cupressi en Chile. In: Resumen y Conclusiones XX Silvotecna: Sanidad forestal en un mundo globalizado. November 7 and 8. Concepción, Chile. Available at: http://www.cormabiobio.cl/encuentro2005/Presentaciones/xxsilvotecna/angelosartori.pdf.

Veblen,T., T. Kitzberger, B. Burns and A. Rebertus. 1996a. Perturbaciones y dinámica de regeneración en bosques andinos del sur de Chile y Argentina. pp 169-198 In: Armesto, J., M. Arroyo and C. Villagrán (Eds.). Ecología de los bosques nativos de Chile. Editorial Universitaria. Santiago, Chile. 470 p.

Veblen, T., C. Donoso, T. Kitzberger and A. Rebertus. 1996b. Ecology of southern Chilean and Argentinean Nothofagus forests. pp 293-353 In: Veblen, T., R. Hill and J. Read (Eds.). The ecology and biogeography of Nothofagus forests. Yale University Press. Michigan, USA. 414 p.

Veblen, T., T. Kitzberger, R. Villalba, and J. Donnegan. 1998. Fire history in northern Patagonia: the roles of humans and climatic variation. Ecological Monographs 69 (1): 47–67.

Wingfield, M., A. Jacobs, T. Coutinho, R. Ahumada and B. Wingfield. 2002. First report of the pitch canker fungus, Fusarium circinatum, on pines in Chile. Plant pathology 51: 397.

Chile_Concepcion_Text

Maps and Figures Attached Separately at hyperlinks

Submitted:  August 2006

Posted:  22 April 2007