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Chile has to shut down a popular ecotourism site in Patagonia, sparking heated debate and some anger from local guides and aspiring adventurers.
The Exploradores Glacier is located in the Laguna San Rafael National Park, in the Aysén Region of the country.
Officials from the National Forestry Corporation, a public nonprofit that manages the country’s forest spaces, cited protection considerations for the area’s closure, pointing to immediate melting and potentially destabilizing effects.
Visitors, especially ice enthusiasts, have to adapt to changing destinations around the world due to the effects of warmer temperatures on some of the most popular routes. Last July, nearly a dozen people died after a large glacier bite triggered an avalanche. That same summer, several agencies cancelled the ascent of Mont Blanc for the first time due to melting ice.
“There are apparent dangers and uncertainties about how the glacier will behave. The conditions are not for ecotourism activities,” according to an email from park officials, AP reports.
The closure comes after a gigantic chunk of ice fell from the main glacier on Oct. 6. A two-week examination was ordered that reportedly found that the glacier is at a “tipping point. “
The glacier has thinned by about one meter each year since 2020. According to the AP, there may be “a catastrophic amount of ice” falling from the main ice mass or the disintegration of the front of the glacier due to “hundreds of people. ” small gaps. “
The national park remains open, and visitors can see the glacier from afar on boat tours. The Forestry Corporation’s website states that “the areas of Lake San Rafael and the Exploradores Glacier are closed. “Several other parks in other regions are or have been subject to a “preemptive closure. “
Speaking to the AP, local consultant Bianca Miranda, who has worked on the glacier for more than a decade, said: “For us, the closure is only an economic blow but also an emotional blow.
“We have been in this position for over 10 years and it is our time at home.
“We paint in adventure tourism, where there is a threat related to it. If we have to close here, let’s stop climbing Everest, let’s stop climbing, let’s stop skydiving.
The Independent has contacted Chile’s National Forestry Company for comment.
This closure follows similar conditions elsewhere, where tourist sites and herbal sites have been closed due to the burden of tourism. In June, the Balinese government completed several mountains due to poor guest behavior.
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