Patagonia, a Treasure Trove of Nature In danger of being submerged by a dam project

Gaucho Toto Hernandez traveling to Lago Vargas along the Carretera Austral with a pair of puppies he found abandoned and is now taking home on the back of one of his horses to train as herding dogs. Toto is pro-dam because he thinks it will bring jobs and "progress" to the area. Story on the culture, community activism and landscapes of the region of Chilean Patagonia that will be effected if 5 hydropower dams are created on the Baker and Pascua Rivers; two of the wildest rivers in the world. Completion of the dams would submerge 5,910 hectares of Patagonia's wild lands and would result in the construction of 200 foot tall transmission lines through a clear cut 400 feet wide for 1,500 miles through 64 communities and 14 protected areas. The transmission lines would provide incentive to build more dams between Patagonia and Santiago. (Photo by Bridget Besaw/Aurora Photos/AFLO) [2980]