Lands, native woods, unique flora species and the infrastructure built by the entrepreneur, are some of the attributes of the lands that Douglas Tompkins was planning to donate , while living, to the Chilean State.
After his death, the process continues through his widow, Kristine McDavitt, who said that “if the Government accept the donation’s conditions, it would be the biggest grant of private land in the world (409.000 hectares)”.
The meeting that was held on Thursday, between Doug’s widow and the president Michelle Bachelet, was the initial kick of the negotiations that would finish in 2018.
The family of the North Face founder, is going to demand the nomination of the donated lands as public protected areas, through the creation of National Parks that would be part of the preservation route at the Patagonia.
According to AFP, Tompkins left his businesses in 1990, and moved to the Chilean Patagonia, where he began a conservationist project, that implies the preservation of 550.000 hectares. The philanthropist donated lands to Argentina for the same purpose.