The Southern Herald || The “Maullín River Portal” Master Plan in Llanquihue advances

Today, the river faces various anthropogenic pressures, such as channel modification, pollution, riparian forest clearance, and the introduction of exotic species, among others. Thus, the Legado Foundation began working on the conservation of this river park, which covers 32.17 hectares and precedes the polygon designated as the Maullín River Nature Sanctuary. This polygon includes the area from the lake shore to the Route 5 bridge, as well as Las Ranas Lagoon, and the fill and debris platform between Bridge No. 2 and the aforementioned lagoon. According to the Ramsar Convention’s Wetland Type Classification System, the Maullín River corresponds to a type M lotic wetland with flowing water.

The Maullín River Edge Master Plan, a gateway to the Nature Sanctuary, is an ambitious and unprecedented initiative in the Lake District. It is defined as a social process of understanding and biocultural appropriation of the landscape that precedes the Maullín River Nature Sanctuary. It involves the coordination and collaboration of all public, private, and community stakeholders present in the area, enabling a conscious, responsible, and respectful co-creation and appropriation of the river edge in its urban stretch. This project began in 2020 with land availability, ecological, and socio-urban assessments. In 2022 and 2023, work was carried out on building a shared vision, branding, stakeholder coordination, and land consolidation. During 2025 and 2026, the Master Plan, project portfolio, and programming will be designed. The objective of this initiative is to recover the urban edge of the Maullín River as a natural space for its ecological conservation, public use, and stewardship of the Nature Sanctuary.