With La Polcura beach decked out for the occasion, the La Polcura Artisanal Fishers Union held the long-awaited inauguration of the La Polcura TURF-Reserve, a Voluntary Protection Zone that is the result of joint work with Capital Azul Foundation that began in 2019.

Covering 15 hectares, the La Polcura TURF-Reserve is located in the central part of the Polcura Territorial Use Right for Fisheries (TURF), and is part of the TURF-Reserve Program that Capital Azul Foundation has been developing in five artisanal fishing coves with the support of organizations such as the SECOS Millennium Institute, BHP Foundation and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) Chile.

On a warm, sunny morning, with barely a single cloud in the bright blue sky, some twenty sixth-graders from Escuela Básica de Pichicuy gradually made their way down to La Polcura beach, a seaside spot in the town of La Ballena, at the northern gateway to the Valparaíso Region.

There they were welcomed by members of the La Polcura Artisanal Fishers Union, who had prepared a display of local crafts and pools with some of the TURF-Reserve’s flagship species. Guided by the charisma and knowledge of Walter Torres, a longtime local fisher, the students discovered and marveled at Jupiter sea stars, limpets, sea urchins, crabs and even a redspotted catshark, among other marine life that finds refuge in this ecosystem.

Afterwards, they were invited to put what they had learned on paper by drawing and coloring a booklet specially designed to showcase the species that live in the TURF-Reserves. But first, a pool full of plastic wrappers and all kinds of trash helped raise awareness about the problem of pollution.

The second part of the event involved other stakeholders, including neighbors and representatives of public institutions such as the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca), the Provincial Presidential Delegation of Petorca and the Municipality of La Ligua, all invited to join this marine conservation initiative led by the local community. A traditional ribbon-cutting was held symbolically, preceded by moving words from the hosts.

“We had been waiting for this inauguration for a long time. The authorities left very pleased, and we welcomed students from a school in Pichicuy who really enjoyed the recreational activities we prepared. It was all very beautiful and educational for the children who came. As an institution we are very happy and satisfied; the inauguration of the TURF-Reserve was truly a success,” said Silvia Otárola Altamirano, a member of the TURF-Reserve Committee of the La Polcura Artisanal Fishers Union.

For her part, Alejandra Garcés, BHP Foundation Country Director, said that “it is a great joy to see how the TURF-Reserve Program that Capital Azul carries out with the support of BHP Foundation keeps adding new voluntary protection zones along Chile’s coasts, which need them so much. This work is carried out together with local communities and reflects their growing commitment to caring for marine and coastal resources and promoting sustainable local economies.”

At the end of the day, members of the La Polcura Artisanal Fishers Union received twelve large-format printed photographs from the Capital Azul Foundation team, as a way of thanking them for their commitment to restoring and caring for the TURF-Reserve.

“A TURF-Reserve means that the artisanal fishers union will have a protection zone and also carries out a series of good practices related to protecting the fauna and flora of La Polcura, so we are very happy to be able to share and be part of this activity, and also to keep collaborating with and supporting artisanal fishing,” added María Soledad Tapia, National Director of Sernapesca.

“The inauguration of the La Polcura TURF-Reserve comes at a very important moment for Capital Azul Foundation’s TURF-Reserve Program, because it is the first one we have inaugurated under the new framework of the Benthic Law. This brings implementation challenges, and we discussed with Sernapesca representatives how we can implement TURF-Reserves properly so that they truly become a potential solution, a tool to improve the well-being of coastal communities,” concluded Rodrigo Sánchez Grez.