Lake Villarrica Decontamination Plan underway!

Officials from the Ministry of the Environment, together with the mayors of Villarrica, Pucón, and Curarrehue.

After years of hard work, the Lake Villarrica Decontamination Plan has officially entered into force, marking a historic step in the protection and restoration of one of the country's most iconic lakes. The plan is the first of its kind in Chile, paving the way for freshwater restoration at a national and global scale. Developed through extensive public participation, the plan reflects a shared commitment from government, local authorities, Indigenous communities, local residents and businesses to safeguard the lake for future generations.

 The plan aims to restore the lake's water quality over the next 15 years, focusing on reducing phosphorus pollution, through a combination of wastewater treatment improvements, rural sanitation projects, ecosystem restoration, and stricter controls on nutrient emissions. The plan seeks to cut phosphorus inputs by at least 67.4 tonnes per year and is implemented at a catchment scale, regulating diffuse pollution sources from the communities of Villarrica, Pucón, Curarrehue and Cunco.

On August 13th, an official launch event was held at Villarrica, organised by the SEREMI del Medio Ambiente de La Araucanía. The event was attended by the Minister of the Environment, Francisca Toledo, as well as the Undersecretary of the Environment, José Ignacio Vial, together with the Regional Ministerial Secretary (SEREMI) for the Environment of La Araucanía, Paula Castillo.

Minister of the Environment, Francisca Toledo.

The uPcycle team has supported our Chilean colleagues at the Ministry of Environment in the development of the Decontamination Plan, and we are delighted to see it implemented!