Pinera’s ‘Green Credentials’ at Risk by Chile Thirst for Power

Sebastian Pinera’s first bill as a Chilean senator 20 years ago aimed to protect the environment. He later created an island nature reserve. Now president, he may oversee approval of a $7 billion project that would flood Patagonian valleys and stretch cables across protected forests.

Pinera’s government has given Santiago-based Empresa Nacional de Electricidad SA until October to explain the environmental impact of its planned HidroAysen complex, which would have the capacity to generate 35 percent of the country’s current power consumption.