The initiative, promoted by the Chilean Ministry of the Environment and the MERI Foundation, is a pioneer in South America.
The first buoy of The Blue BOAT Initiative, an ocean conservation project that will contribute to the protection of whales and marine biodiversity in the waters of Chilean Patagonia, was installed in the Gulf of Corcovado, offshore from the island of Chiloé.
Suyai is the name of this intelligent buoy that is part of the first early warning system for whales in South America. Thanks to its sophisticated listening technology, the buoy will detect the presence of cetaceans at sea and will alert the Navy in real time, which in turn will notify nearby vessels in order to reduce the risk of collisions, the main cause of death of these animals.
"Whales are true ecosystem engineers, key species for the well-being of the oceans and in the fight against climate change. For that reason, the installation of this buoy is very good news that will allow us to better protect them. This early warning system will help us to avoid collisions between the vessels that circulate in this place and these cetaceans. We must consider that it is estimated that at least 10% of the world's blue whales are present in this area. Our commitment to biodiversity and to the planet is to give them as much protection as we can," said the Minister of the Environment, Maisa Rojas.
The next step is that this project can be replicated in different areas, ensuring a safe ocean corridor for the transit of whales. In fact, due to its magnitude and scalability, The Blue BOAT Initiative was presented by the Chilean Foreign Minister, Antonia Urrejola, as one of the concrete solutions of the Country Commitment 2022-2023 for the protection of the oceans at the Our Ocean Palau 2022 Conference.
In order to amplify this milestone in the international community, Imagen de Chile took correspondents from El País, Reuters and Al Jazeera to cover the installation and entry into operation of the buoy, where the journalists were able to learn first-hand about the project and the people involved in this initiative.
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