Assessment of Landscape Changes caused by Highway Construction: Case Study of Ruta del Canal Pargua Highway in Chile
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Date
2023
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Abstract
The constructed infrastructure that has made cities more livable to their human inhabitants not always has benefited the overall ecosystems, which has leading to some fragile land covers being the most affected (i.e., grasslands, wetlands, etc.). In this article, it is analyzed the relationship between the natural landscape and the highway “Ruta del Canal Pargua” in Puerto Montt, Chile. A comparison was performed/implemented based on a Land Use Land Cover Change (LULCC) analysis from a year before the construction of the highway (2012) to the most updated available image (2021). Three field spots were selected to observe the wetland’s landscape visual qualities, landscape natural features, and road management (2022). The results showed that anthropic interventions have been continuing to transform the natural features of wetland’s landscape, especially the native roadside vegetation, and noise pollution. This change was promoted by the lack of management of the highway in its surroundings, and, by the intrusive LULCC. This paper also discusses the persistent lack of ecological management for highways in southern Chile and sparks the conversation about the necessity to include an ecological perspective in road infrastructure design in Chile that could be replicated in Latin America
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Roadside vegetation, Highways, Chile, Visual Scale, Landscapes