For the third year in a row, Reserva Las Torres obtained the Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV) granted by the Savory Institute. It measures and trends ecosystem function based on holistic management, planned grazing, and soil regeneration in the Chilean Patagonia.
After seven years of implementing a holistic management of its grasslands, Reserva Las Torres renewed Savory’s Institute’s ecological outcome verification (EOV). The certification verifies soil regeneration at the Reserve because, although there is no more livestock production, there are more than 200 horses for tourism and mountain hostels supply and logistics.
The EOV, which is used in various parts of the world, monitors the grasslands and soil that feed the Reserve’s horses and creates a grazing plan that ensures soil health (water and minerals cycles, etc.). This helps avoid desertification -one of the main causes of climate change- to which two thirds of the planet’s surface area are exposed.
“Thanks to the holistic management we have been able to imitate nature, providing recovery times to grasslands. The planned rotation of the animals helps us increase the plants’ photosynthesis capacity thus improving the soil’s CO2 capture from the atmosphere,” explains Antonio Kusanovic Olate, Agricultural Engineer and expert in holistic management.
How is the accreditation obtained? In Chile, it is given by Efecto Manada, a member of Savory Institute’s global network. This organization, which provides consultancy services and training on soil conservation, also performs the EOV that was developed by scientists, ranchers, and ecology experts. Monitoring holistic management has allowed Reserva Las Torres to focus its soil conservation efforts with interesting results, as accredited, for the third time, by Savory Institute’s EOV.
Isidora Molina, Veterinarian, accredited EOV monitor and Efecto Manada’s Head of Consultancy and Project Development in Chile adds, “it is important to carry out ecological monitoring, especially with this methodology, for landowners to check if they are effectively regenerating soil and improve the tools they are using, such as rest, animal impact, and others.”
It should be noted that the decision to remove cattle from Reserva Las Torres was made in 2013, to devote the land to sustainable tourism and ecosystem conservation. Today, the Reserve’s more than 200 horses are not only key for tourism and logistics, but also for an ecological function thanks to holistic management.
“Obtaining this certification for the third consecutive year means a lot to us. It is the culmination of our continuous effort to implement regenerative practices in our Reserve that help us improve soil quality and protect the biodiversity of a unique ecosystem such as Torres del Paine,” said Josian Yaksic K., CEO of Reserva Las Torres.
After stopping livestock production in 2013, Reserva Las Torres is now moving forward with this scientific methodology and revolutionary management approach, which is celebrating its seventh year. From January 2023, Reserva Las Torres has moved forward by planning ecological monitoring to achieve once more the EOV certification, as it was previously done three years ago. Thanks to this and other initiatives related to reforestation, seedbeds, and sustainable trails, Reserva Las Torres aims to position itself as a key sustainability party in the territory, thus promoting the natural and cultural conservation of Torres del Paine.