The Legislature of Chubut, province in southern Argentina, unanimously approved the creation of the Patagonia Azul Provincial Park, a new 295,135-hectare marine coastal protected area, willing the natural environment conservation and the development of the regional economy.

RELATED:

Explore the Canaima National Park: The Great Treasure of Nature in Venezuela

The creation of the Patagonia Azul Provincial Park implies the legal protection of one of the most biodiverse areas of the Argentine Sea, where more than 50 species of seabirds inhabit, 13 of them have their nesting sites there, especially in the more than 60 islands and islets of the region.

The size of the new park is equivalent to Yosemite National Park (USA) and includes the Interjurisdictional Marine Coastal Blue Patagonia Park (PIMCPA), the Cabo Dos Bahías Natural Protected Area and 200,000 hectares more.

The site is home to species such as humpback whale, sei whale, one- and two-haired sea lions, Magellan’s penguin, giant petrel and imperial cormorant, and vegetation includes macro-algae forests, Rocky islands and intertidal areas that support unique fish and invertebrate ecosystems.

Ministry of Tourism of Chubut in a statement reported that the park is a unique opportunity for conservation and development of the regional economy, based on nature tourism and “Sight of an incredible and abundant wildlife, as species converge there.”

Patagonia Azul is the second most important nature destination on the entire Atlantic coast of Chubut, larger than Los Alerces National Park and ten times the size of Punta Tombo, so it was defined by the portfolio as “a true blue giant that promises to become an engine of sustainable development for the whole region.”

IN THIS ARTICLE