(Bloomberg) — Chile’s new government moved to withdraw dozens of environmental decrees issued under the previous administration, a sweeping move that threatens to damage the Latin American nation’s green credentials as it looks to boost investment.
The administration of President José Antonio Kast filed the request to halt the 43 decrees with the Comptroller General’s Office — where they were under review — on March 12, his first full day in office.
The decrees included naming the sea around the Juan Fernández islands as a protected zone and bolstering defense of the Humboldt penguin species. Chile has been a pioneer on environmental issues in Latin America, naming more than 20% of its “national land surface,” including inland waters, as protected areas and investing billions in renewable energy.
“It’s a strategic error in how it was handled,” said Marcelo Mena-Carrasco, a former environment minister. “There are plenty of critics who will come out and say this is a ‘chainsaw’ approach,” alluding to the controversial governing style of Argentina’s President Javier Milei, a Kast ally.
While governments typically review pending measures when they come to office, they rarely withdraw so many, Mena-Carrasco said.
The review is part of the new administration’s internal audit plan, which mandates a thorough examination of all pending decrees and regulations, the Environment Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. The move is standard at the start of a new administration, it said.
The ministry added that the outgoing government in early March submitted 21 decrees for processing by the Comptroller General’s Office, including 13 on its final day in office.
“The signal of withdrawing all the decrees has generated significant concern among political actors, NGOs and scientific communities,” said Diego Luna Quevedo, a policy and governance specialist at Manomet Conservation Sciences. “At stake are a series of essential instruments and tools built through agreements, aimed at strengthening institutions and protecting ecosystems, rights and communities.”
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