At the age of 15, Elvio Lagos took his first steps toward becoming a shellfish diver. He began helping his father catch conger eels and shellfish in Caleta Horcón, a cove in central Chile not far from the copper-centered industrial area of Quintero-Puchuncaví, dubbed as one of the country’s so-called “sacrifice zones” due to high pollution levels. At 18, Lagos decided to become a fisher. This profession ensured he made enough money to contribute to home expenses, because “at that time, we could fish 150 kilograms [330 pounds] of limpets, snails, piure [Pyura chilensis, a sea creature that resembles a rock with red flesh inside] and sole,” the now-56-year-old told Mongabay Latam. Back then, the sea was so abundant that he and his companions could get around 600 clams to eat on their way home. “The sea was full of catch and there was seaweed everywhere,” he said. But things are different today. “It’s sad to see how the seascape has changed. There’s no seaweed anymore.” To confront this new reality and restore the area, a group of scientists, led by Loretto Contreras, a professor of biological sciences at Chile’s Andrés Bello National University, is working with the fishers of Caleta Horcón. The aim of the project is to collaboratively create a seaweed management strategy to repopulate the seabed with giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) and Chilean kelp (Lessonia spicata) — two species that are key to the ecosystem’s health. Despite significant challenges, there have been some encouraging signs: The first…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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