7.3 Seaweed Harvesting Chile Darwin Application - Falkland Islands ...

Submit by Monday 24 October 2011
DARWIN INITIATIVE APPLICATION FOR GRANT FOR ROUND 18: STAGE 2
Please read the Guidance Notes before completing this form. Where no word limits are given, the size of the
box is a guide to the amount of information required. Information to be extracted to the database is
highlighted blue.
1. Name and address of organisation (NB: Notification of results will be by post to the Project Leader)
Name: Prof. Juliet
Brodie
Address: Natural History Museum, Department of Botany, Cromwell
Road, London SW7 5BD
2. Project title (not exceeding 10 words)
SUSTAINABLE SEAWEED HARVESTING IN SOUTHERN CHILE
3. Project dates, duration and total Darwin Initiative Grant requested, matched funding
Proposed start date: 1 April 2012 Duration of project: 3 years End date: 31 March 2015
Darwin funding 2011/12 2012/13 2013/2014 2014/15 2015/16 Total
requested £
£ £
£ £
£
Proposed (confirmed and unconfirmed) matched funding as percentage of total Project cost:
4. Define the purpose of the project (extracted from logframe)
To enhance Chile’s capacity to sustainably harvest and manage the macroalgal diversity and
underpin the livelihoods of the indigenous Yahgan and Kawésquar communities and fishermen of
the Magallanes Region.
5. Principals in project. Please provide a one page CV for each of these named individuals. You may
copy and paste this table if you need to provide details of more UK personnel or more than one
project partner.
Details Project Leader Other UK personnel
(working more than 50%
Surname
Forename (s)
Post held
Institution (if
different to above)
Department
Telephone
Email
of their time on project)
Main project partner and
co-ordinator in host
country/ies
Brodie Mansilla
Juliet Andrés
Research Phycologist/
Research Chair
Director of Research &
Graduate programme
University of Magellanes
Botany Department of Science
and Natural Resources
0207 942 5910 +56 61 207089
j.brodie@nhm.ac.uk andres.mansilla@umag.cl

6. Has your organisation received funding under the Darwin Initiative before? If so, please provide
details of the most recent (up to 6 examples).
Reference No Project Leader Title
15018 Fred Naggs Developing land snail expertise in south and southeast
Asia (Thailand, India, Nepal, Laos, Vietnam, Sri Lanka)
15025 Steve Brooks Capacity building for biodiversity studies of freshwater
insects
15027 Alex Monro Baseline tools for management in PN La Amistad
15015 Sandy Knapp Tools and training for fern conservation and monitoring,
El Salvador
14015 Alan Warren Conservation of Jiaozhou Bay: Assessment &
biomonitoring using ciliates
13003 Ralph Harbach Taxonomic capacity building in support of biodiversity
conservation in Thailand
7. IF YOU ANSWERED ‘NO’ TO QUESTION 6 describe briefly the aims, activities and achievements of
your organisation. (Large institutions please note that this should describe your unit or department)
Aims (50 words)
Activities (50 words)
Achievements (50 words)
8. Please list all the partners involved (including the Lead Institution) , and explain their roles
and responsibilities in the project. Describe the extent of their involvement at all stages, including
project development. This section should illustrate the capacity of partners to be involved in the
project. Please provide written evidence of partnerships. Please copy/delete boxes for more or fewer
partnerships.
REMOVED
9a. Have you consulted stakeholders not already mentioned above? Yes √ No
If yes, please give details:
9b. Do you intend to consult other stakeholders? Yes √ No If
yes, please give details:
9c. Have you had any (other) contact with the government not already stated? Yes √ No
If yes, please give details:
This would be something to be done once the project is running. The municipality and mayor are
government bodies, therefore, after starting the project they would be able to contact the
corresponding state agencies (e.g. CONAMA) directly.
9d. Will your project support any work in the UK Overseas Territories? √ Yes No
If yes, please give brief details stating which Territory/ies will be involved.

The project will support DI biodiversity projects in the Falkland Islands whereby comparisons can
be made between two unique regions, where seaweeds are exploited in the former but not in the
latter. The drive among the partners to develop a “conservation triangle” between the Magallanes
Region, Isla Navarino and the Falkland Islands will also support the development of a network of
scientists and the creation of a strategy for seaweed conservation in the Southern Oceans which
will in addition include the OTs South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
PROJECT DETAILS
10. Please provide a Concept note (Max 1,000 words) (repeat from Stage 1, with changes highlighted)
Background
• The global macroalgal industry is worth > US5 billion. Chile produces 20% of the world’s
supply. Global demand has increased 300-fold in recent years.
• Magallanes is a significant source-region of macroalgal export.
• Exploitation of this resource in this remote sub-Antarctic region is increasing dramatically,
from reaching 10,140 tons in 2008 to 15,064 tons in 2009.
• Magallanes has one of the most pristine marine ecosystems in the world (UNESCO 2008).
It includes > 5% of the world’s seaweed species and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
• Seaweed harvesting supports livelihoods of fishing and indigenous Yahgan and Kawésquar
communities in Tierra del Fuego, Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve, Hoste, Riesco, Dawson
Islands, and Brunswick Peninsula.
• Macroalgal ‘forests’ represent a major habitat for red listed dolphins and whales, and
tourism focussed on these charismatic species is a significant income source for the region.
• Glacier melt associated with climate change is likely changing seaweed diversity.
Problem / Need
• No base-line information exists for Magallanes to underpin monitoring and assessment of
natural (and currently threatened) populations of macroalgae.
• No tools exist for monitoring and assessment or to generate base-line data for conservation
and management.
• Current harvesting is inefficient, as important growth and reproductive aspects of
macroalgal population biology are not taken into account prior to harvesting.
• There is an unsustainable demand for raw materials for food, pharmaceutical and other
industries.
• Observed collapse of natural populations for several key species has led to concern by the
seaweed fishermen about their livelihoods. Yet there are no harvesting quotas exist to
underpin sustainable harvesting.
• These factors combined threaten current macroalgal biodiversity, and the survival of
communities dependent on harvesting it.
Partners in Magallanes recognise the pressing need to train human resources currently lacking in
the region in identification of algal groups of commercial interest, including aspects of their life
history and recognition of optimal reproductive stages to harvest. For example, different life history
phases of red algae produce different types of gelling agent and so require distinct harvesting
techniques. Training fishermen to differentiate the phases would enable vital conservation of the
important reproductive phases, increase harvest efficiency and add value to harvesting.
There is also a strong drive amongst the project partners to develop a “conservation triangle”
between the Magallanes Region, Isla Navarino (Omora Ethnobotanical Park outdoor classroom /
natural laboratory) and the Falkland Islands.
Proposed strategy
We propose training the local community in macroalgal biology and taxonomic identification, as an
indirect means of alleviating poverty among fishermen and indigenous communities, focusing on
algal groups of commercial interest.
We will:
1. Develop capacity by training people in identification of macroalgae of commercial interest,

including aspects of life history and optimal stages for harvest.
2. Quantify the macroalgal resource for the region using all data available, including biological
collections and local knowledge.
3. Develop tools to empower fishing communities to assess and monitor the commercial
macroalgal resource and phenological stage.
4. Train fishermen in the use of these tools.
5. Develop a network between the partners for dissemination of outputs throughout Chile.
6. Raise awareness of macroalgae and their conservation to wider public and tourists.
Outcomes
1. Identification and taxonomic capacity to underpin assessment and monitoring of
biodiversity.
2. Macroalgal biodiversity base-line data generated and assessed, additional harvestable
macroalgal resources identified.
3. Identification tools for use by indigenous and local fishermen.
4. Macroalgal sustainable harvest guidelines produced.
5. Seaweed fishermen trained in sustainable harvesting techniques.
6. Conservation network between southern Chile and the Falkland Islands established that will
facilitate knowledge transfer in the Southern Ocean.
7. Awareness raised wider public and tourists.
Resolution and CBD obligations
Resolution will contribute to the objectives of the CBD (Article 1), identification and monitoring
(Article 7), in situ conservation (Article 8c, d, f, I, j), sustainable use of components of biological
diversity (Article 10), research and training (Article 12), public education and awareness (Article 13)
and exchange of information (Article 17). It will contribute to the 2011-2020 Strategic Plan for
Biodiversity: sustainable harvesting (Target 6), traditional knowledge (Target 18) and sharing of
knowledge (Target 19). Contribution to the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation will be to
Objective I, plant diversity understood, documented and recognised (Targets 1-3), Objective II,
plant diversity urgently and effectively conserved (Target 4), Objective III, plant diversity used in a
sustainable manner (Targets 12 & 13) and Objective V capacities and public engagement (Targets
15 & 16). Contribution at national level (National Biodiversity Strategy of Chile - CONAMA) will
help to improve knowledge of conservation and the sustainable use of the biodiversity (7 a-d). The
project contributes to the Millennium Development Goal 7, ensure environmental sustainability.
Benefit to local communities
The development of a sustainable seaweed harvesting industry is crucial to the survival of these
communities in southern Chile. This project complements existing initiatives in Magallanes Region.
Work with fishermen is ongoing to restore populations of economically important red macroalgae in
Tierra de Fuego to conserve populations and associated diversity. Projects assessing the use of
native algae in regional cuisine are being developed.
The partners
1. NHM: Overall project co-ordinator; will oversee project commitments to Darwin Initiative. Algal
specialist. Staff input for identification and curation training.
2. A. Mansilla (UM): Project co-ordinator, Chile; hosting trainees; algal specialist; logistics; Silvia
Murcia: algal specialist; communication.
3. ME Ramirez (MNHN): training in macroalgal identification, collections and curation.
4. M. Avila (UNAP): training in cultivation and resource management of macroalgae.
5. R. Rozzi & F. Massardo (Omora NGO): use of Field Station in Cape Horn; capacity training of
the fishermen, scientific workshops and educational programmes on taxonomy and macroalgal
biology for students.
6. Alejandro Martinez (Danisco), Miguel Salinas (MGA), Patricio Caceres Gerente (SA): capacity
building with fishermen.
7. Artisan Fishermen’s Union, Tierra del Fuego County and Cape Horn County: work with partners
in sustainable harvesting.
8. Municipality and Mayor of Punta Arenas: Government support.
9. Paul Brickle (Falkland Islands – Shallow Marine Surveys Group): biodiversity and conservation
of algae.