Hydroelectric Project on the Futaleufú to be Chile’s Second Largest

The word Futaleufú is almost unpronounceable the first time you see it.  But it becomes unforgettable the first time you paddle down the river.  For anyone who has spent time on the Futaleufú, the rapids and the landscape become etched in the mind.  Located in the inaccessible northern hinterland of Chilean Patagonia, the river (and the land it nourishes) is one of extremes.  As rugged as any mountain river valley found in the contiguous United States, the Futaleufú valley has a 6,000 ft. vertical relief between the valley floor and the glacier-topped mountains encircling it.  For the truly ambitious, it is possible to go rafting and swimming in the morning and be camping up on the snowline by nightfall.

The whitewater season on the Futaleufú River is a short one.  It only lasts about four months before the hostile weather of the Andes closes in, returning the river to another eight months of winter hibernation.  Unfortunately the life of this river and the landscape it inhabits may be as comparably short.

What’s threatening the Futaleufú?

In 1996, just five years after the first successful raft descent of the river, it was announced that the water rights to the Futaleufú River were purchased by Endesa, the largest private electricity multinational in Latin America.  Endesa plans to generate 1,367 megawatts of power by placing three dams along the Futaleufú River. Because of the river’s strength and reliable year-round flows, a hydroelectric project on the Futaleufú River is too big to pass up.  Together, the dams will comprise about one third of Endesa’s total hydroelectric portfolio in Chile.

Having lain fallow for almost fifteen years with little more than rumors circulating around, the project has now entered the development pipeline and is well on its way to becoming a reality unless local communities and businesses can unite to stop it.

This project will be the second-largest hydro project in Patagonia, following Endesa’s more well-known HidroAysen project south of the Futaleufú, on the Baker and Pascua Rivers. Endesa envisions a Patagonia where the Baker and Pascua serve as a southern anchor to a massive power line snaking through the entire region. The power line will serve like a zipper, opening up the landscape to the mining and logging industries which for decades have avoided the region due to unreliable sources of energy and poor infrastructure.  With the transmission line established, projects up and down Patagonia will be able to receive or transmit power to and from the national grid. The Futaleufú valley, which is largely unprotected from development, will become a boon for not just for Endesa’s dam-building operations but also the ever-expanding mining sector.

Nobody wants to see this happen, which is why the people in Chile need your help.

How you can help

A new organization, the Futaleufú Riverkeeper, was launched in 2012 by a Chilean environmental attorney to protect the Futaleufú from being destroyed. They need your help. O.A.R.S. has already joined the Futaleufú Riverkeeper as a supporter. In addition to donating a portion of their proceeds from running trips on the Futaleufú each year, O.A.R.S. is also donating $1 for every new Facebook like they get through the end of March, 2013 (up to $2,500). Please help raise funds for the Futaleufú by liking and then sharing the O.A.R.S. Facebook Page.

Another big way you can help is to give directly. There are two ways to do this. The Futaleufú Riverkeeper is a Chilean nonprofit with 501(c)3 fiscal sponsorship in the U.S., meaning you can make a tax-deductible donation online through the Waterkeeper Alliance. Waterkeepers around the world (with help from people like Edward James Olmos) are fighting to protect local watersheds and the communities who depend on them for survival.

In Futaleufú, communities have adopted a tourism-oriented future that has tremendous potential for economic growth while keeping the river and its tributaries intact.  These communities are willing to fight to protect their right to enjoy and benefit from their environment.  Local opposition is no small obstacle for Endesa, which has had trouble getting projects approved in Chile since its overtly aggressive approach to damming the Bio Bio River in the mid-1990s. (Read more about the Bio Bio River in an interview with the Riverkeeper’s Executive Director). Community opposition combined with the legal strategies being developed by the Futaleufú Riverkeeper can stop this project in its tracks before Endesa and its investors become completely committed.

Finally, you can also support the Riverkeeper by booking your own adventure down the Futaleufú, on a trip National Geographic recently highlighted as one of ten great adventure trips that give back.

Photo: Neil Rabinowitz

The Future of Patagonia

After two decades of gaining fame the world over among whitewater and adventure sport enthusiasts, the Futaleufú River is now caught up in the global quest for more natural resources. The mantra of developers is always that one more dam or one more mine will solve the world’s resource problems.  But if history is the judge, the exploitation of Patagonia will only momentarily sate the world’s appetite, not quench it. Large dam proponents like Endesa want us to permanently trade away the world’s most amazing rivers for a few decades of shareholder returns for their investors. Meanwhile, regions like Patagonia are trying to decide their own destinies, and they are choosing economic growth that incorporates the protection of irreplaceable landscapes, valleys and rivers. For many the answer is clear: ¡Patagonia Sin Represas! With your help, large hydro and mining will stay out of Patagonia, and future generations will get to experience the thrill of paddling and rafting down the mighty Fu. Please join the fight today.

Related Articles:

7 of the Best Whitewater Rafting Trips in the World

How The Tatshenshini-Alsek Wilderness Avoided Mining Disaster

The Green River Makes the Most Endangered Rivers List

The post The Future of Patagonia is in Your Hands appeared first on River Currents.

5.  Baja, Mexico. An enjoyable destination much of the year, Baja, Mexico is an especially sweet spot in January and February when you can witness the Gray whale migration from Alaska to the western shores of Baja which become their breeding ground.  Explore islands and bays by kayak, whale watch in Magdalena Bay, and relax on sandy beaches as you forget it’s the middle of winter.    

4.  Galápagos Islands.  The Galápagos Islands are a natural playground like no other. Here, adventure and nature lovers alike, get to explore a fascinating underwater world complete with giant tortoises, hike in Charles Darwin’s footsteps and kayak majestic blue waters around magnificent volcanic islands.  Anytime you can live in your bathing suit for a week in the winter is a bonus.

3.  Chilean Patagonia.  The best way to experience Chile’s Patagonia?  By raft.   During the winter months in the northern hemisphere, the exhilarating Class V Futaleufú River, nestled below the snow-capped peaks of the Andes, offers an adventure that tops many people’s bucket lists.  Start your year off with an unforgettable experience.  

2.  Queensland Coast of Australia.  Are you mesmerized by the sun, stars and sky?  Travel on a once-in-a-lifetime exploratory trip to the Queensland Coast of Australia during the next total eclipse cycle.  You’ll even have a chance to view the eclipse from a hot air balloon.  Now that’s something that not many folks can say they’ve done. You’ve got to be ready to act fast though.  The one-time trip with O.A.R.S., Total Eclipse: The Sun Down Under, is scheduled for November 12-19, 2012. Call Carrie Aronson at  1-800-346-6277 ext. 4786 for details.

And our number one winter getaway pick, simply because it’s such a unique and exclusive opportunity, is…

1.  Sacred Rivers of Bhutan.  Not exactly the first destination that comes to mind when you think of amazing whitewater, but Bhutan’s Class IV Drangme Chhu amid dramatic mountain scenery is just waiting to be explored.  Join international adventurer Barbara Neary and O.A.R.S. president & founder, George Wendt, to be part of the second-ever expedition to run the entire canyon of this pristine river. Now that’s some serious bragging rights.  Contact Barbara Neary at  1-800-346-6277 ext. 4804 or email her at barbaran@oars.com to find out about this incredible 17-day rafting and cultural expedition from December 2-18, 2012.

Where are you headed this winter?  Chime in below with your favorite winter getaway spots.

The post Top 5 Winter Getaway Ideas for Adventure Lovers appeared first on River Currents.