Ecobreves – CHILE: Police Protect Biodiversity

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SANTIAGO, Aug 1 2005 (IPS) - The Chilean National Environment Commission, CONAMA, is training the militarized police, known here as Carabineros, to protect the country's biodiversity. The program is part of an initiative from the police agency's high command, says Macarena Mellado, head of communications for CONAMA in the O'Higgins region, adjacent to the metropolitan region of Santiago, where the project began.

Since last month, police and other officials from the forestry, fishing, farming and livestock sectors, along with experts from the National Office of Emergencies, have been receiving training from CONAMA experts in the importance of biodiversity, international treaties to protect it, and Chile's national strategy, with emphasis on local problems and priorities, Mellado told Tierramérica.