The efforts of Kris and Doug Tompkins to acquire lands since 1990 have paved the way to the conservation of nature and Chile's beautiful landscapes. Although their visions were marred by antagonists who thought they are seeking the lands for their own personal benefits, the preservationist couple thrives to reach their goals. Even at the death of one of them, Kris Tompkins continued on to dedicate themselves as the Tompkins Conservation has recently donated 11 million acres of land, all for its preservation.

The Tompkins Conservation foundation has donated over a million acre of land to the government to expand their national parks and the signing of agreements was done just last week. According to reports from Blooloop, the donation of Tompkins Conservation was the largest ever made by a private entity and their generosity was acknowledged by Chilean president Michelle Bachelet. With the recently signed agreement, the Chilean government can add five more new parks with its 11 million acre land expanding from the north to south.

Adding Parque Pumalin and Patagonia to Chile's national park system will add up more jobs, and will definitely produce an income of about US$270 million for in tourism as per reports from New Atlas. With its huge expanse, it is considered to be three times the size of Yosemite and Yellowstone National Parks combined. The pledge between Tompkins Conservation and the Chilean government has to be felt before the end of president Michelle Bachelet's term in 2018.

Thus, the project of expansion and converting these lands into national parkland has a 12-month deadline. The proposed "Route of Parks" will be a 17-park network extending up to 1,500 miles from Puerto Montt to Cape Horn. Thanks to Kris and Doug Tompkins' purest intentions, this will be Chile's sanctuary to its citizen and a tourist spot for nature lovers and adventurers from around the world.

Related