Water resources management in Chile
Much of Chile is dominated by the Andes Mountain range and many high altitude glaciers. With rising temperatures, the IPCC warns of increased melting for many of these glaciers, with some of them disappearing as early as 2020–2030. The Third Assessment Report from the IPCC indicate a critical situation for glaciers in neighboring countries such as Bolivia and Peru. The IPCC report goes on to say that glaciers in Chile are drastically reducing their volume at an increasing rate and that changes in temperature and humidity are the primary cause. In an article from Science Daily in March 2008, the news agency reports that, "if the inter-tropical glaciers of Chile, Argentina, and Colombia disappear, water availability and hydropower generation will be affected." Of the thirty test glaciers monitored in the Andes by the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) only Chile's Echaurren Norte glacier thickened between 2005 and 2006.
Transverse Valleys
The Transverse Valleys (Spanish: "Valles transversales") are a group of transverse valleys in the semi-arid northern Chile. They run from east to west (traversing Chile), being among the most prominent geographical features in the regions they cross. They are located in the Chilean regions of Valparaíso, Coquimbo, and Atacama. They share some characteristics, such as reaching the Pacific Ocean without passing through an Intermediate Depression, being rather deep and dissecting the landscape, concentrating most agriculture and population in the areas through which they pass, and being intensively cultivated. They are one of the defining elements the Chilean natural region of Norte Chico. The area of the Transverse Valleys spans roughly a length of 600 km from north to south.