Chile

Aug. 28 (UPI) — After Wednesday’s devastating glacier collapse in the Himalayas, scientists and geologists are warning that unstable conditions and the accelerating retreat of Andean ice sheets are exposing Chile, Argentina and Peru to the risk of catastrophic floods and mudslides.

The retreat of Andean glaciers has accelerated the formation of unstable lakes and exposed large slopes of loose rock that can collapse more easily as global temperatures rise, experts say.

Fast-moving floods and mudslides through mountain valleys could directly threaten drinking water supplies, energy projects and the lives of thousands of people living in vulnerable areas of the three countries.

The Himalayan disaster, which has left almost 600 people dead and more than 1,900 others missing, experts say that although monitoring and early-warning technologies exist, the speed and scale of glacial lake outburst floods, or GLOFs, such as the one in Nepal can make responding difficult.

“What happened in Nepal has already happened in Argentina,” Juan Pablo Milana, a researcher with Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council, told Infobae.

In November 2005, Laguna de los Erizos in San Juan province suddenly burst, releasing more than 1.1 billion cubic feet of water in just 67 minutes, Milana said. The flood traveled more than 155 miles, destroying crops and roads and isolating communities. No deaths were reported because the area was sparsely populated.

In Argentina, the areas at greatest risk are concentrated in Patagonia. One of the most critical sites currently under observation is the tourist town of El Chaltén, where instability on the slopes of Cerro Solo directly threatens Laguna Torre.

Lakes formed by the retreat of large ice masses, such as the Upsala Glacier, also pose a potential threat. In 2013, a collapse in the glacier’s channel generated a destructive wave in Onelli Bay.

Argentina’s Geological and Mining Survey and research teams from the University of Buenos Aires are responsible for monitoring the threats.

They combine satellite imagery used to update the National Glacier Inventory with projects to establish ground-based early-warning systems. Those systems are designed to use weather stations and hydrological sensors to detect changes in water levels and unusual slope movements in real time.

With more than 26,000 glaciers, Chile is among the countries most exposed to GLOFs worldwide, with risks divided between two distinct geographic areas.

The largest high-risk zone is concentrated in remote Chilean Patagonia, particularly the Aysén and Magallanes regions, where the rapid retreat of the Northern and Southern Patagonian Ice Fields has increased the formation of unstable lakes held back by fragile natural dams, although the region has a low population density.

Geographer Simón Inzunza told Chilean broadcaster T13 that the country has recorded GLOFs, particularly in Patagonia, as well as other emergencies associated with glacier melting and ice collapses.

In central Chile, watersheds are smaller but the risk is significant because of the high concentration of infrastructure, including hydroelectric plants, mining operations and drinking water systems serving millions of people.

Darío Ormeño, a geologist and professor at Andrés Bello University’s School of Earth Sciences, told BioBioChile radio that a mudslide is a real risk in Chile, although an event on the scale of the Nepal disaster is unlikely.

“Our glaciers are much smaller and do not have such an extreme elevation difference,” Ormeño said.

Chilean government agencies monitor glaciers using a national inventory updated with satellite imagery and radar. The tools allow authorities to measure the growth of glacial lakes and detect cracks in Andean slopes in an effort to issue early warnings before a disaster occurs.

Peru faces the highest risk in South America of disasters caused by GLOFs, with a history of deadly events and significant geographic vulnerability.

Paola Moschella, director of glacier research at Peru’s National Institute for Research on Glaciers and Mountain Ecosystems, or INAIGEM, told Exitosa radio that Peru has 528 lakes at risk of overflowing, including 58 considered high risk.

Unlike Patagonia and some high-altitude areas of Chile and Argentina, where glaciers are in remote valleys, entire cities and critical infrastructure in the Peruvian Andes, particularly in the Áncash region, lie directly along potential flood and mudslide routes.

Lake Palcacocha, in Peru’s Cordillera Blanca mountain range, is considered by scientists to be one of the world’s most critical cases because of its instability and proximity to the city of Huaraz, which has more than 120,000 residents.

The lake holds more than 599 million cubic feet of water and is fed by hanging glaciers that are susceptible to large avalanches as global temperatures rise.

If a large block of ice were to collapse into the lake, it could generate a massive wave capable of breaching its natural barriers and triggering a destructive flood that could reach urban areas in less than an hour.

The threat has a deadly historical precedent. In 1941, a similar outburst from the same lake destroyed about one-third of Huaraz and killed thousands of people.

Scientific monitoring in Peru has advanced significantly through the deployment of permanent personnel in high-altitude areas and the use of satellite surveillance systems.

Experts warn, however, that physical mitigation infrastructure installed in previous decades is outdated or insufficient to contain current water volumes.

SANTIAGO, Chile, Aug. 10 (UPI) — Chilean President José Antonio Kast signed a constitutional reform bill Monday that lays the groundwork for his government’s new agenda to combat organized crime.

The initiative seeks to give the state stronger and more explicit tools to confront sophisticated criminal activity. Kast urged Congress to move quickly and approach the legislation with a willingness to reach agreements, with the goal of enacting the measures before the end of the year.

The government’s agenda includes more than 30 bills aimed at strengthening efforts to combat criminal organizations.

Key measures include creating a new state of emergency provision that would allow the deployment of the armed forces, establishing a registry of criminal organizations and creating separate high-security prisons for criminal leaders.

The measures would also streamline the seizure of illicit assets, extend the period in which authorities can make arrests in cases of flagrante delicto — caught in the act — to 24 hours and increase penalties for serious crimes.

Luis Toledo, a former prosecutor and director of the Center for Studies on Security and Organized Crime at San Sebastián University, said expectations about what the agenda can accomplish should be conservative.

“In the short and medium term, it is entirely possible to reduce homicides, regain control of certain territories, improve prison control and dismantle specific organizations, but structurally reversing the penetration of organized crime is another matter,” Toledo told UPI.

He said Chile is confronting not only criminal gangs, but also illicit markets with demand, sources of financing, money laundering mechanisms, recruitment capabilities and international connections.

“And those markets have an extraordinary capacity to adapt: When one structure is dismantled, smaller cells emerge, changing their leadership, communications, routes or financial mechanisms,” he said.

Toledo said Kast’s agenda contains significant proposals, but also has shortcomings, including combining measures targeting organized crime with broader public security and immigration enforcement policies.

“That distinction is important because not everything that increases the state’s coercive capacity necessarily dismantles a criminal organization,” he said.

He said the initiatives with the greatest potential are those aimed at targeting the assets of criminal organizations, seizing their property and preventing them from reinvesting illicit profits.

With organized crime expanding across Latin America, Toledo said tighter controls on illegal entry into the country and other measures proposed by Kast are necessary, but insufficient to address the problem on the scale required.

A transnational criminal organization cannot be fought exclusively through a national response, he said, adding that “international cooperation is one of the essential operational capabilities of a policy against organized crime.”

“We have to see whether Chile will be able to build a state policy that, on a sustained basis, creates a coordinated public security system capable of stripping organized crime of its money, command capabilities, territory, impunity and ability to recruit,” Toledo said. “That is where the possibility of truly reversing the phenomenon lies.”

Alfonso Kaiser, a risk management expert and professor in the Master of Engineering Management program at the University of the Andes, questioned the agenda’s lack of concrete objectives for measuring its results.

“A plan is being presented that does not have clear objectives. We don’t know how we are going to measure them or how much we want to achieve,” Kaiser told UPI.

“We need to take a more measured approach and conduct a somewhat more technical analysis of what goals we want to achieve and when we expect to achieve them.”

Kaiser agreed that border control should be a priority and said the government should strengthen the authority of Carabineros, Chile’s national uniformed police force, and the Maritime Police to deter illegal entry into the country. However, he said the main challenge lies within Chile itself.

“The main failure is internal. It is not that we are facing an extraordinarily intelligent enemy,” Kaiser said. “Our own mistakes are what have led to this situation.”

Vozinha arrived in Santiago on Sunday to a lively reception from Colo Colo’s fans and joined his new team-mates in training two days later.

The veteran goalkeeper became a cult hero when Cape Verde claimed their first-ever World Cup point against Spain in the group stage and has seen his social media fame explode from 50,000 Instagram followers to nearly 30 million.

After helping his team reach the knockout stages, taking finalists Argentina to extra time in the last 32, Vozinha was named in Fifa’s team of the tournament and even had a newly discovered species of sea slug named after him.

Vozinha’s career has taken him to Slovakia, Angola, Moldova, Cyprus and, most recently, Portuguese second division side Chaves, but he has always believed himself to be a “‘big club’ player”.

Joining Colo Colo, the most successful team in the Primera Division (34 titles) and Copa Chile (14), is his career “highlight”.

“The decision was very clear. Despite playing in smaller leagues for clubs that weren’t exactly giants, deep down I always told myself I was a ‘big club’ player,” Vozinha said.

“So when Colo Colo came calling, there was no doubt. From day one, I knew where I wanted to play. I received many offers but Colo Colo was always the priority.

“The World Cup was the best thing that ever happened to me in football, but that is in the past now. Being here representing Colo Colo – a massive club with a rich history – is the highlight of my club career.”

The 40-year-old goalkeeper made headlines around the world after starring in Cape Verde’s goalless draw with Spain.

Cape Verde’s heroic World Cup goalkeeper, Vozinha, has reached an agreement to join Chilean club side Colo Colo.

The 40-year-old stopper, who made headlines around the world after starring in a goalless draw with Spain, will travel to Chile for a medical before being unveiled, Colo Colo’s president, Anibal Mosa, announced on Saturday.

Vozinha became one of the most talked-about players at the World Cup with a string of remarkable saves against top teams, including defending champions Argentina.

The goalkeeper, who left Portuguese second-tier side Chaves before the summer, was voted into FIFA’s fan-selected World Cup dream team.

“Vozinha will be a Colo Colo player. In the coming days, he will travel to Chile, undergo the usual medical examinations and then be presented here at the Estadio Monumental,” Mosa said.

He added that Vozinha’s World Cup performance showed he deserved the move, while acknowledging the signing also carried marketing appeal for the Chilean side.

Colo Colo teased the signing on social media with an image appearing to show the veteran goalkeeper’s trademark curly hair.

Vozinha, whose full name is Josimar Jose Evora Dias, has also become a social media star, with help from Brazilian influencer Casimiro. The goalkeeper’s Instagram following has soared from 50,000 to nearly 30 million.

He also made headlines after revealing that his mother, Ana Candida Evora, was unable to travel to watch her son due to the cost of a bond payment for a visa to enter the US.

She was eventually granted a visa with all travel fees waived after lobbying from US House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Colo Colo, who are based in the Chilean capital Santiago, are currently top of the Liga de Primera.

They are the most successful side in Chile and the only club from the country to win the Copa Libertadores.

SANTIAGO, Chile, July 22 (UPI) — Chile’s Congress approved most of the economic and tax reforms promoted by President José Antonio Kast — one of the flagship initiatives of his government agenda.

The reforms include a gradual reduction in the corporate tax rate from to 23% from 27% to encourage investment and revive economic growth.

The Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday passed the National Reconstruction and Economic and Social Development bill, which also establishes tax incentives for the repatriation of capital, creates compensation mechanisms for companies when courts overturn projects that have already received Environmental Qualification Resolution approval and eliminates the tax on a first home for older adults.

Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz said the initiative seeks to “restore tax competitiveness” and provide greater certainty for investment.

“We have approved measures to restore certainty for investment in Chile, remove permitting barriers that have kept investment projects and economic activity stalled, and provide security for those who decide to invest,” he said.

The approval represents one of Kast’s main legislative victories since taking office in March, and allows him to advance one of the pillars of his economic agenda — reducing the tax burden to stimulate private investment and accelerate growth.

Jorge Berríos, academic director of the Graduate Diploma in Finance at the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Chile, told UPI that the reform is intended to restore investor confidence and create conditions for the country to return to growth above 3%.

“A reduction of several percentage points in the corporate tax rate has positive effects on companies and the economy, although those results are generally seen over the long term,” he said.

Berrios said some effects could be felt sooner in the labor market because of the subsidies included in the initiative, as well as through an improved perception of Chile among domestic and foreign investors.

“The Chilean market is returning to a structure similar to that of the 1990s, with market-oriented reforms that allowed the country to achieve strong growth and stand out in Latin America,” he said.

Berríos said the Chilean economy experienced several years of uncertainty marked by increased regulation and higher taxes — factors that he believes damaged the country’s standing among investors.

The Confederation of Production and Commerce, the country’s leading business organization, welcomed approval of the bill. Its president, Susana Jiménez, said the initiative represents “an important step toward restoring the economy’s dynamism and returning to growth.”

The only provision still awaiting approval is the compensation mechanism for municipalities, which will lose part of the revenue generated by the tax on residential properties.

SANTIAGO, Chile, July 16 (UPI) — Chile declared a preventive state of emergency across 10 of its 16 administrative regions as authorities warned that an exceptionally severe weather system linked to El Niño could bring life-threatening conditions, widespread flooding and significant property damage.

President José Antonio Kast’s government issued the emergency declaration ahead of a powerful frontal system expected to trigger flooding, overflowing rivers and landslides in the Andes foothills.

Chile’s Meteorological Directorate forecast that the system, which already has reached the country’s southern regions, will persist for five consecutive days, bringing heavy rainfall, strong winds, snowfall in the Andean foothills and hazardous coastal conditions.

Central and southern Chile are expected to face three consecutive frontal systems, including a Category 5 atmospheric river, the highest level on the scale used to measure these corridors of concentrated atmospheric moisture. In response to the multi-hazard event, authorities issued the country’s highest meteorological alert.

Meteorologists warned that Santiago alone could receive between 4 and 6 inches of rain during the event, more than half the precipitation the capital typically receives from four to six major winter storms.

According to records from Santiago’s main weather station, the city averages 11.27 inches of precipitation annually. The approaching system could deliver between 35% and 52% of the city’s average yearly rainfall within just a few days.

Metropolitan Gov. Claudio Orrego said the situation could become even more challenging because the region has experienced an unusually dry year.

“The metro area is expected to get [5.5 to 8 inches] of rain over four days, with winds reaching about [45 mph], and the freezing level has climbed above [11,500 feet]. That adds up to a difficult situation for the region. We expect the power companies to respond appropriately to what’s coming,” Orrego said.

Chile’s National Geology and Mining Service, known as Sernageomin, warned of a high probability of mudslides, landslides, rockfalls and flooding.

Kast said the Armed Forces had been placed on preventive standby to strengthen the government’s emergency response capabilities.

“The Armed Forces have ordered their personnel into preventive readiness so they will be available if a response is required,” Kast told Radio BioBio.

As an additional precaution, authorities suspended classes at preschools and schools in the affected areas.

Officials also urged residents to prepare for possible disruptions to essential services, including drinking water and electricity. One of the government’s main concerns is the resilience of the power grid after severe storms in August 2024.

During that event, wind gusts exceeding 74 mph damaged critical infrastructure, leaving more than 80,000 households without electricity for as long as six days.

Carolina Martínez, director of the Coastal Observatory at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, warned that the storm’s effects could continue even after rainfall subsides.

“We should not only be concerned about the rain, but also about the behavior of the ocean, the response of beaches, unstable coastal cliffs, hillsides reacting to higher river flows at river mouths and intense or concentrated rainfall,” she said.

Martínez said the storm could cause localized flooding, shoreline changes, wave overtopping, increased pressure on wetlands and river mouths, along with sinkhole risks in the most vulnerable areas.

The preventive state of emergency will remain in effect through Tuesday.

June 24 (UPI) — Global aquaculture production reached a record high, while Chile maintained its position as the leading supplier of salmon to the United States and one of the sector’s top exporting powers, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

According to the report The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture, global fisheries and aquaculture production reached 235 million tons in 2024. For the first time, aquaculture production surpassed 100 million tons of aquatic animals, 89% of which is destined for human consumption and provides at least one-fifth of the animal protein consumed by 3.1 billion people.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said Latin America and the Caribbean account for 15% of global aquatic product exports despite representing 9% of worldwide production, with a total of 13 million tons.

The region exported $27 billion worth of aquatic products, driven mainly by Chilean salmon, anchoveta from Peru and Chile, and Ecuadorian shrimp.

In this context, Chile ranks first in aquaculture production in Latin America, is the largest supplier of salmon to the United States and the world’s fifth-largest exporter of aquatic animal products.

Together with Norway, Chile accounts for nearly half of the value of global salmon and trout exports.

“The growth aquaculture has experienced in recent decades has not been accidental. Behind this progress lies significant work in research, innovation and technological development,” Valeska San Martín, an academic at the Coastal Research Center of the University of Atacama and a researcher at the Millennium Institute in Coastal Socio-Ecology, told UPI.

She said these advances have enabled the development of better feed for farmed species, more efficient genetic selection programs, increasingly precise environmental monitoring systems and automated tools that optimize feeding and health management.

“All of this has helped increase productivity and improve the efficient use of resources while at the same time reducing part of the costs associated with production,” she said.

San Martín added that Chile has been one of the most important players in global aquaculture development and is recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as one of the world’s 10 leading aquaculture producers.

“In 2024, it led global exports of frozen salmon and trout fillets, processed mussels, fishmeal and various algae-derived products, reaching more than 100 international markets, particularly the United States, Japan, Brazil, China and Europe,” she said.

Growth prospects remain positive, according to SalmonChile, the industry association representing salmon producers.

“Chilean salmon exports maintained a positive trend in 2026. During the first quarter, they reached $1.991 billion, representing growth of 8% in value and 19% in volume compared with the same period a year earlier,” the organization told UPI.

SalmonChile added that the record achieved by global aquaculture in 2024 confirms the growing prominence of aquaculture products in international trade and consolidates Chile’s position as one of the world’s leading salmon-producing powers.