Socio-Ecological Studies in Urban and Rural Ecosystems in Chile - Earth Stewardship: Linking Ecology and Ethics in Theory and Practice - page 293

(ONEMI) was created, but with limited powers. Even though the ONEMI includes
the perception of risk as important for preventing or mitigating disasters, the agency
only is allowed to make recommendation to the local municipalities. Finally it is the
municipality that decides the type of intervention applied to the landscape. Today,
these models are outdated and differ from international disaster recovery plans and
models that highlight the valuable role of ecosystems services (Vale and Campanella
2005 ; ISDR 2005 ; Resilience Alliance 2010 ).
In southern Chile, the fl uvial city Valdiva, for example, has a past and recent
history of natural disasters where certain ecologically important structures have
provided ecosystem services to the population. However, today these places (e.g.
urban wetlands and urban forest remnants) hardly are valued by local authorities
and thus continually disappear, often being replaced by housing developments.
In 1552 when Valdivia was founded as a Spanish fort the city was surrounded by
the Valdivia River that had clean and navigable waters, as well as lakes with an
abundance of birds, other wildlife, and luxuriant fl ora as described in historical
records (Guarda 2009 ). Today, several of these Valdivian natural attributes could be
considered as cultural ecosystem services due to their beauty, recreational opportu-
nities, and river transport advantages (Guarda 2009 ). However, this natural urban
landscape underwent several changes over time due to virtually continuous pro-
cesses of reconstruction following natural disasters, housing and infrastructure
densifi cation, and constant urban sprawl. By 1885 the lakes mostly had been fi lled
in for housing developments. The need for homes caused by the devastating effects
of a 1909 fi re led to even more pressure to fi ll remaining wetland areas. The most
dramatic of urban changes in Valdivia occurred after the severe 1960 earthquake,
when the South American Plate lurched upward as much as 20 m relative to the
subducting Nazca Plate (Barrientos and Ward 2007 ), adding new wetlands to the
already existing ones. Wooden tents used as temporary housing facilities, the rucos ,
were located around these new wetlands (Fig. 19.1a ). Over the years, rucos were
replaced by permanent housing, creating new neighborhoods next to these swampy
areas (e.g. Skewes et al. 2012 ). These changes have formed an urban landscape in
which society and nature interact. However, these interactions have not respected
these places as sources of water since the 1960s earthquake, nor as sources of city
beautifi cation and recreation valued as it was in 1552, when the city was founded.
The way that these places have been valued have changed over time, risking their
current existence.
A recent study funded by the National Commission for Technology and Scientifi c
Research (CONICYT) revealed some of the social values associated with the
wetlands during the aftermath of an earthquake in Valdivia (Villagra et al. 2014 ).
Wetlands were found to be amongst the seven most used urban spaces for earth-
quake recovery. Nonetheless, their utility varies depending on the presence or
absence of a set of biophysical aspects that modify their appearance, and hence,
their utilitarian values. In case of an earthquake scenario nowadays, the study shows
that the presence of biophysical attributes such as water, vegetation, street infra-
structure, and iconic architecture in the urban landscape, cause them to be perceived
as useful for shelter, evacuation, and temporary housing. Studies in two other coastal