The Chilean forestry research institute, INFOR, announced on Jun. 21 that it is creating an environmental monitoring network for the country's forests, thanks to two projects that demanded state investment of one million dollars. These projects paved the way for setting up forest monitoring bases in Chile's southern rural areas, where most of the forestry resources are concentrated, said INFOR director Roberto Ipinza.

New technologies and equipment will make it possible to expand the network to the rest of the country, and a forestry map is already available on the Internet at www.mapaforestal.cl, said Ipinza.

There one can find ''basic information about the existence and potential of forest resources associated with native ecosystems in the ninth and tenth regions (in the south), which are essential for planning resource use with the perspectives of ecological, social and economic balance,'' the INFOR director added.