Coquimbo Region: Environmental Policy for Sustainable Development
1 .- Why is it important to develop a regional environmental policy?
It is important because it meets important needs for all sectors of local life. It is expressed in her environmental commitment of national public services operating in each territory and regional governments and municipalities, private sector, universities and media, NGOs, various associations, social organizations and other forms of expression of the community. She claims that every sector of the environmental community to take stock of the historical process of regional development.
2 .- What are the two approaches that nourish the environmental policy for sustainable development in the Coquimbo region?
The two main guidelines are:
ulos challenges from the environmental point of view arising from the Regional Development
Strategy
ULA local expression of the National Environmental Policy
3 .- according to CONAMA, which is sustainable development?
Sustainable development is a challenge the whole society and is represented as a triangle whose vertices, in a dynamic equilibrium, are: economic growth, social equity and environmental quality.
4 .- What is the CONAMA, COREMA, NGOs, Oremi, ASPP, SNASPE, SINIA, SIRI?
üCONAMA: National Environment Commission
üCOREMA: Regional Environmental Commission
üONGs: Nongovernmental Organizations
üOREMI: Regional Emergency Office
üASPP: Private Protected Areas
üSNASPE: National System of Protected Areas of State
üSINIA: National Environmental Information System
üSIRI: Regional Information System.
5 .- How should materialize environmental policy in a heterogeneous regional context?
Should be marked by a diversity of ecological areas, productive vocations, social structures and levels of development, so each region taken the decision to develop the respective environmental policy that requires diagnosis, challenges and tasks to be addressed in each of places where she governed.
6 .- What must meet needs elaboration of a regional environmental policy. Make a synthesis?
demand that each sector of the community conduct a environmental assessment on the historical process of regional development.
Develop an updated diagnosis, defining how the environmental reality today is affected by the economic environment, social, cultural, institutional, national and international levels.
Each sector of the regional community should review its future challenges and priorities, establish deadlines for compliance, identify required resources and responsibilities of each sector (public, private, academic, labor unions, grassroots organizations and citizens in general ) and also identifies those tasks that require the participation of various actors in the region.
Consider the environmental policy as a dynamic instrument that should be updated periodically to adapt to new realities, that because the environmental reality of the region either by changing the impact of demographic and economic growth through the introduction of new technologies or by behavioral patterns of the population.
The policy aims to make environmentally sustainable development by ensuring the right to live in an environment free of pollution, environmental protection, nature preservation and conservation of environmental assets
7 .- Who produces and sanctions the Regional Environmental Policy?
Regional Environmental policy was drafted under the responsibility of the Regional CONAMA collected during this process background and views of various public and institutional sectors in the region. The final document has been sanctioned by the Regional Environmental Commission. COREMA after review on the Technical Committee.
8 .- What are the limits and the physical characteristics of the Coquimbo Region?
The Region of Coquimbo lies between arid desert and the warm Mediterranean, and extends from the southern boundary of the Salt River watershed to the north of the Aconcagua River basin. Its geography of 40,580 km2 is strongly characterized by valleys, a short distance, crossing from the Andes, to its attractive coastline. This area is a desert environment transition towards more humid conditions, characterized by the dryness resulting from low and erratic rainfall. The Coquimbo region has an area of 40,580 km2, accounting for 5.36% of its land area. The regional population according to Census 2002 was 603,210 inhabitants, equivalent to 4.0% of the national population and its population density is 14.8 inhabitants per km2. The rural population is 132,288 persons, representing 21.9% of the total regional population. In 1999 the population had grown to 570,000 inhabitants, spread over this vast territory gives a density of 14.0 inhabitants per km2, significantly lower than the national average (19.9 hab./kms2).
9 .- What are the political, administrative, human and economic of the region of Coquimbo?
The Region of Coquimbo, politically and administratively divided into three provinces, from north to south: Elqui, Limarí and Choapa. These comprise a total of 15 communes. 73% of the population resides in urban areas, emphasizing the regional capital, La Serena, Puerto de Coquimbo, Ovalle and Illapel. The regional population is equivalent to 3.8% of national total, but their contribution to the economy of the country is lower, reaching in 1996 to 2.6%, a situation that has continued since 1985.
The population shows a steady growth in recent years and, from the standpoint of urban-rural distribution, there has been a strong trend toward urbanization. The basis for economic growth following the development has been achieved in some sectors such as agriculture and agribusiness, fishing, medium and large scale mining, tourism, trade and manufacturing.
The regional economy and employment, therefore, are strongly linked to natural resources. In 1995 mining contributed 24% of GDP and 21.4% Agroforestry activity. A level of specific items, in recent years, production of pisco, tourism and fishing industries have been growing substantially.