Francisco Ruiz-Tagle on the consequences of the wildfires: “We are faced with an environmental emergency”

The CMPC CEO in a radio interview addressed the situation wrought by the catastrophic wildfires in south-central Chile. He went on to explain the company’s reconstruction and restoration plan as a response to the emergency.

In an interview with Radio Agricultura, CMPC CEO Francisco Ruiz-Tagle discussed the environmental consequences caused by the fires and said, “The ecological damage that was wrought is enormous. I’d say that we’re dealing with an environmental emergency. The reason behind this is that there has been an enormous amount, thousands of hectares of hillsides of burned and treeless terrain, without vegetation anymore. The threat of flooding is quite real.”

Ruiz-Tagle further explained the reconstruction and restoration plan that the company is implementing in the area, which he summarized in five main pillars. First, the creation of biological corridors, specifically a new one measuring 140 kilometers long by 100 kilometers wide, which will be located in the Nahuelbuta mountain range area. “A sort of green road between these natural forests, which helps protect various species of flora and fauna. It connects different zones, allows for mobility and prevents species isolation,” he said.

He said that the other plan pillars consist of new areas of productive coexistence through agrosocial projects, protection rings for populated areas, increased protection zones for springs and waterways, in addition to more firebreaks and continuity breaks in the forests. More specifically, the CMPC CEO explained that the fire load will be reduced in these areas with a smaller number of trees per hectare of plantation and with a combination of plantations of different ages.

Likewise, Francisco Ruiz-Tagle emphatically clarified that the reconstruction and restoration plan has nothing to do with any bad practices of the company; rather, it’s part of an opportunity to make improvements based on the experience and advances made by the industry overall. “We use a certified sustainable forest management method that is highly demanding. We have FSC certification, which is a type of global certification, just like Scandinavians and Americans that are also certified,” he explained.

Regarding society’s view of the industry, Ruiz-Tagle said, “Forest plantations are often demonized as if they were against biodiversity, which couldn’t be futher from the truth.” He explained that starting in the 70s when the forestry industry in Chile began to grow, 14.5 million hectares of native forest existed at that time, a figure that is practically the same today. “I would like to add that the forest plantations were not planted primarily as a replacement to native forest. They were planted in areas of mainly hillsides, eroded ground, and treeless terrain. The biodiversity of a plantation, which is what is essentially behind the criticism of monoculture is much greater than what was there before,” he concluded.

Check out the full interview here:

https://www.cmpc.com/audio/Entrevista%20Francisco%20Ruiz-Tagle.mpeg