Respect and Inclusion at ECMPO Yaldad: Communities Sign Significant Agreement with Artisanal Fishermen and Quellón Shellfish Farmers

Original article: “Respeto e inclusión en ECMPO Yaldad”: Comunidades firman importante acuerdo con representantes de la pesca artesanal  y mitilicultores de Quellón

Yaldad Estuary Communities in Quellón Sign Inclusion Agreement with Artisanal Fishermen, Shellfish Farmers, and Other Local Stakeholders

Images and information provided by: Camila Pérez Soto, journalist and photographer.

On August 12 of this year, communities from Fundo Yaldad Mon Fen, Incopulli de Yaldad, and Cocauque in Quellón convened to sign inclusion agreements regarding the application for the Marine Coastal Space of Indigenous Peoples (ECMPO) Yaldad. This initiative will enable representatives from artisanal fishing, shellfish farming, and the local community, represented by their Neighborhood Council, and the Network of Intercultural Facilitators of Quellón, to participate in the ECMPO application, creating a landmark for inclusive collaboration.

The ECMPO Yaldad application encompasses a region with a significant number of concessions, primarily linked to the shellfish farming industry and one salmon farming concession. However, the communities are not opposed to the industry but have reached agreements with it to safeguard their territory, ensure the conservation of the Yaldad estuary, and maintain territorial order as fundamental pillars.

It is important to note that there are requests for the relocation of shellfish farming concessions approved by the requesting communities of the ECMPO. However, the Undersecretariat of Fisheries has yet to approve the relocation.

The Lonko of the Yaldad Mon Fen community, Cristian Chiguay, states that «for us, the ECMPO is vital as it allows us to work in the manner our ancestors taught us, which is in community, with respect, including all mapuches and non-mapuches. What we truly want is to organize our territory. We want to be protagonists of our development and contribute to cleaning our coastal area, which is filled with trash.»

In this way, representatives from Yaldad’s artisanal fishing sector also deem it necessary to support the ECMPO, demonstrating that the communities and artisanal fishermen are not in conflict but rather seek to collaborate:

Horacio Campos, a representative of the Artisan Fishermen Cooperative ALTAMAR and a Yaldad resident for over 30 years, expresses, “I come to support the Marine Coastal Space of Indigenous Peoples Yaldad. It is important because, in the current context, the demand for resources, the use of our coasts, and industrial activity jeopardizes the sustainability of the coastal edge.” He reiterates his support for this request.

Thus, the communities applying for this ECMPO expect to collaborate with all coastal users of Yaldad. These actions are set against the backdrop of the upcoming vote on this ECMPO in the Regional Coastal Use Commission (CRUBC) for the Los Lagos Region, projected for August 25.

Although this year has seen a trend within the CRUBC Los Lagos to reject ECMPO applications, the Yaldad estuary communities hope that this agreement for inclusion will serve as a supporting factor for their approval.