Intendant Karla Rubilar leaves Bosque Panul unprotected
A year has passed since the Intendant of Santiago, Karla Rubilar, committed to protecting Bosque Panul through the preparation of reports — such as the appraisal of the properties — a process that to date has not been carried out. This situation leaves the last remaining lung of native vegetation within the urban limits of Santiago completely unprotected and at risk. The community asks the current government to fulfill its commitments and protect the forests that survive around the city and sustain life, especially given the complex global scenario.
After several failed attempts to meet, the community defending Bosque Panul managed to present to the Intendant of Santiago, Karla Rubilar, in October 2018, the arguments for protecting this valuable ecosystem.
It was explained that unfortunately, at the local level, the mayor of La Florida, Rodolfo Carter, has been unwilling to protect Bosque Panul or the precordillera of the municipality.
This has allowed, for example, the owners of Fundo Panul to continue contaminating it with sea sand and marine waste.
The meeting addressed the thirteen years the community has been requesting and demanding its protection — a commitment made by all the authorities, but fulfilled by none.
The Intendant listened to our arguments and committed to protecting Bosque Panul "regardless of who it might upset." To that end, a technical working group was established, with members from various ministries, whose results were expected by December of last year — but to date we have seen no report or proposals.
This working group committed to producing the following documents: a report on the current legal situation and the means to protect Panul (making clear that the only viable option is the expropriation of Fundo Panul, Zavala, and Santa Rosa at a fair price, to convert them into a National and Community Park), and an official appraisal of these estates at market value (not like the one done by the previous government under Intendant Orrego, which was "at the private owner's value"). The Provincial Governor committed to requesting a report from the Municipality of La Florida asking why the forest has been left unprotected.
Let us recall that the main excuse the authorities have offered for not protecting Panul is supposedly its "high" price. The owners of Fundo Panul demand 40 billion pesos from the state to purchase or expropriate their property. The irony is that these same owners (the Navarrete Rolando family, owners of OXIQUIM) acquired Fundo Panul in a "single bidder" auction during the full dictatorship (1978) for one million pesos — equivalent to about 17 million pesos in today's value.
However, the State and various governments, both local and central, have chosen not to investigate this theft committed against the National Assets agency, and the response given to the community for failing to protect it has been precisely its "high price." But there is a tremendous injustice in this — it is an open wound in our history — and it also intersects with another important urban problem: who sets land values in Chile?
In this case, the private owner speculated with the value of the property. To do so, they created shell companies that sold Fundo Panul to one another, completely distorting its original value. But the State has sufficient tools to protect these ecosystems and pay what is fair. We hope the authorities understand the environmental emergency we are immersed in and declare the entire precordillera and Andes range of Santiago a great National Park.
To date, the technical working group has still not delivered any document or progress, and Intendant Rubilar has not addressed the topic — with two months left in her term before she steps down to run as a candidate for regional governor.
Meanwhile, Bosque Panul continues to be at risk of destruction, protected only by the community.
Red por la Defensa de la Precordillera.
September 2019.
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