“Let’s save the spiny-chested frog”: following Di Caprio’s appeal, the power line between Chile and Argentina has been halted

It involves a frog and it involves Leonardo DiCaprio, but it’s not a film. Chile’s Environmental Assessment Service (SEA) has suspended the hearing to approve an electricity project in the Maule region, following an appeal by the "Titanic" actor (and long-standing environmentalist) to protect the Pehuenche frog, whose habitat is said to be threatened by the project. The process for the Los Cóndores-Río Diamante project began five years ago. The aim is to build a high-voltage electricity transmission line to enable the import and export of electricity between the Chilean and Argentine power grids. The project is being spearheaded by Enel Chile (the Chilean subsidiary of the Enel Group), which anticipates a total investment of 36 million dollars. 

It is regrettable, however, that the area where this major infrastructure project is due to be built is home to a very rare frog, the Alsodes pehuenche. Known as the "spiny-chested frog". “Fewer than a thousand remain in the wild,” wrote DiCaprio two days ago in a heartfelt social media appeal. “This amphibian, which is critically endangered, lives exclusively in the Pehuenche Valley, between the Chilean and Argentine Andes. Now the species faces one of its greatest threats: a binational electricity transmission project.”  The day after the post, on Monday 10 August, “the Chilean government could approve a catastrophic plan that would destroy the heart of its only known habitat”. DiCaprio’s request, he specifies, is not to halt the project, but to have it carried out elsewhere. His request has been granted, at least on the first point.

On Monday, the SEA suspended the meeting of the Evaluation Commission (Coeva) scheduled for 4 pm, concerning the project’s environmental impact assessment. At present, the official website does not state the reasons for the decision, nor is it clear when the meeting will be rescheduled. It cannot therefore be ruled out that the appeal by a Hollywood star such as DiCaprio may have influenced the course of events. For its part, Enel Chile has given assurances that it has analysed the environmental aspects and is ready to cooperate with the authorities. The authorities, however, do not appear to be showing a similar willingness to engage. On 9 July, in fact, the 20 regional councillors and the governor of the Maule region, Pedro Álvarez-Salamanca, unanimously voted to reject Enel’s project. This non-binding decision was driven by fears that the project could have a negative impact on the natural ecosystem of the Upper Maule and jeopardise the process of having the nearby Pillanmapu Geopark recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

On this matter, the Chilean government’s position remains ambiguous. “This social media post concerns a specific project that is currently undergoing an environmental assessment, so I cannot comment on a project whilst it is still ongoing,” said Environment Minister Francisca Toledo, referring to DiCaprio’s appeal. She went on to defend the country’s authorisation process: “Chile has a robust institutional framework for environmental matters, in which all the relevant information is assessed and weighed up for the purposes of environmental assessments.” Yet, frogs aside, the government in Santiago does not seem at all opposed to strengthening its energy links with Argentina. 

On 21 July, the Chilean Minister for Energy, Ximena Rincón, met with Jimena Latorre, Minister for Energy and the Environment of Mendoza, the Argentine province where Enel’s project is due to be built. During the bilateral meeting, the two ministers “agreed on the need to strengthen energy integration as a means of promoting economic development, security of supply and new investment on both sides of the Andes”, according to an official statement. One of the main topics discussed was the Los Cóndores–Río Diamante interconnector. According to Latorre, this project could also be complemented by the future ultra-high-voltage Río Diamante–Charlone line (in the north-western part of the province of Buenos Aires), another strategic project envisaged under the National Plan for the Expansion of Electricity Transmission. “This would therefore constitute a bioceanic electricity corridor, starting in Chile, crossing Mendoza and integrating into the Argentine backbone grid, thereby strengthening the infrastructure necessary for economic development and new investment,” emphasised the Minister from Mendoza.  “The modernisation of electricity infrastructure is essential for the development policies of both countries and the entire region. Therefore,” she concluded, “we are committed to closely monitoring progress and maintaining direct contact with all the provinces that will benefit from these projects, which will ensure the security of the binational electricity system.” 

The Los Cóndores-Río Diamante project will also be assessed separately by the Argentine authorities. And there could be far fewer hitches here (DiCaprio permitting).