Creating the Future Katalalixar National Park and Marine Reserve
Katalalixar National Park and Marine Reserve Project
The future Katalalixar National Park and Marine Reserve, located in the southern Aysen Region of Chile, is a conservation project to study and enhance protection of the pristine terrestrial and marine habitat of a wild archipelago in western Patagonia.
Project Overview
Katalalixar National Reserve is one of the wildest landscapes in all of Chile, and in the world. Its isolation and difficult access in the Chilean fjords has helped preserve its wild character and contributed to it being largely unexplored. Without prior terrestrial scientific research, this landscape is largely unknown in the science community too; we are working to change that!
At approximately 1.65 million acres, this tropical coastal reserve consists of a large array of islands and fjords. In an effort to recategorize and expand protections for this extremely wild and globally unique landscape, our team is beginning the ecological research needed to produce scientific documentation for the creation of a new and expanded protected area in this wild corner of Chile.
The future Katalalixar National Park and Marine Reserve will encompass the many canals and fjords surrounding the boundary of the new Tortel Coastal Marine Protected Area, a multiple-use marine protected area approved for creation on February 26th, 2018. After roughly a decade of work to protect the fjord waters off the coast of Caleta Tortel, it is now time to strengthen protections for both the terrestrial and marine ecosystems of the Katalalixar National Reserve.
The marine habitat of this globally rare archipelago is one of the most pristine of its type and our work will contribute to upgrading protections for its waters, preventing the harmful impacts of industrial salmon aquaculture. The resulting national park and marine reserve will exceed 4.5 million acres in size, becoming one of the largest sea-to-summit protected areas in South America.
Protecting Biodiversity and Cultural Heritage
Contributing to the creation of this new national park and marine reserve will save species from extinction and help preserve the area’s Kaweskar heritage; consider donating today to create one of Chile’s largest protected areas.