Chinchillas or Gold: Which Is More Important?

A letter by J. E. Jiménez (University of North Texas) and colleagues in the journal Science poses the question: What is more important, chinchillas or gold?

Wild chinchillas have been exploited in Chile for their luxuriant fur long before Columbus sailed the ocean blue. Exploited so much that they’ve been declared an Endangered Species and their historic range up and down the South American coasts of Chile, Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina has been severely restricted to “the most inhospitable and remote places of Chile and Bolivia,” per Jiménez.

Now, even that restricted range is under siege. ’e discovery of gold has spurred proposed mining in rocky and remote desert locations, but thus far Chilean conservation laws have kept mining companies at bay. Mining lobbyists are asking for eased restrictions, and the government is grappling between “corporate goals and environmental conservation.” Which will win out? Only time will tell.