Native Plant Production in Chile. Is It Possible to Achieve Restoration Goals by 2035?

Abstract

Facing rapid loss of biodiversity as a consequence of climate change, Chile has formally pledged to restore 600,000 ha of native forest by 2035. This effort, however, has not considered the amount and quality of native plants required to meet this pledge. Thus, we examined data collected during the annual, government-conducted census of small- and medium-sized nurseries from central Chile, which account for 78% of the nation’s total plant production, to assess if current production is sufficient to meet Chile´s restoration needs. We coupled this with data collected during our series of ongoing research projects to determine if nurseries are currently meeting minimum seedling quality standards based on morpho-physiological attributes. Our four-year analysis (2016–2019) shows that the number of native seedlings has increased by only 4%, but because only 19% of nursery managers have training, just 29% of all seedlings meet quality criteria for restoration. Thus, under the current rate and quality of plant production, meeting restoration pledges desired by the year 2035 would not be achieved until 2181. This timeline can be accelerated through an urgent expansion of nursery space, implementation of a continuous program for technology and knowledge transference, and strong support through governmental policies.

Application of MaxEnt Modeling and HRM Analysis to Support the Conservation and Domestication of Gevuina avellana Mol. in Central Chile

“…The criteria that we address to develop an effective plan for conversation and/or sustainable use in G. avellana not only considered a survey of genetic and ecological information of the species in the region but also included the development of a fast and efficient system of in vitro propagation of individuals of high genetic and phytosanitary quality selected based on their genetic, phenotypic, phenological plasticity, and agroforestry characteristics of productive interest (unpublished data). This point is really important since Chile has committed to restoring 600.000 ha of native forest by the year 2035; however, the quantity and quality of native plants that are required to be produced were not considered; When evaluating whether the nurseries currently meet the minimum seedling quality standards based on their morphophysiological attributes, it was concluded that the restoration commitments desired by 2035 would not be achieved until 2181 [ 97 ]. With respect to the potential for domestication, G. avellana , due to its agroforestry and productive characteristics, should be seriously considered as an alternative for the development of a crop of regional interest.…”

Caracterización de viveros de plantas nativas y su posible aporte a la restauración de los talares bonaerenses

“…¿Cuál es la magnitud de la producción de plantas nativas actualmente en el país? La experiencia de Chile y Brasil, donde hace años se realizan censos de la producción de viveros de nativas, revela que a los países vecinos les queda un gran recorrido por hacer para poder cumplir con sus compromisos de restauración internacionales (Moreira da Silva et al 2017;Bannister et al 2018;Acevedo et al 2021). Por esto, dado que en la Argentina desconocemos cuántos viveros de nativas existen, qué especies nativas y cuántas plantas se producen anualmente para hacer frente a los V������ � �� ����������� �� �� ������������ ₂₄₉ distintos desafíos, es importante que se realice un relevamiento de viveros de plantas nativas a nivel nacional.…”

Pre-Germination Treatments at Operational Scale for Six Tree Species from the Sclerophyll Forest of Central Chile

“…In the context of the Paris Agreement and the update of the Determined Contribution at National Level in 2020, Chile is committed to afforest 70,000 hectares of native species for the formation of a permanent forest cover and to restoration processes of 1,000,000 hectares of landscape [ 20 ]. However, Bannister et al [ 21 ] identified three bottlenecks for successful forest restoration in Chile: (1) a lack of national plan for forest landscape restoration; (2), poor quality and low supply of native plants species, which was thoroughly described by Acevedo et al [ 22 ]; and (3) poor results in the establishment phase. Likewise, León-Lobos et al [ 23 ] describe a fourth bottleneck focused on the low availability and seed quality of native species, which impairs plant production and the achievement of restoration goals.…”

“…Despite that seed anatomy and the environmental conditions can shed light regarding dormancy in seeds of species from the sclerophyll forest, there is a lack of information regarding specific dormancy and the identification of suitable pre-germination treatments that maximize its germination [ 23 , 33 , 34 ]. Although higher germination is a pre-requisite to unlock the following bottlenecks for restoration [ 21 ], such treatments should consider their applicability by local nurseries, that in most cases lack the proper training to, for example, handle toxic chemicals for acid stratification such as sulfuric acid [ 22 , 35 ].…”