Inaugurated Stromatolites Park in Porvenir, Tierra del Fuego Island

Image from elmagallanico.com

Stromatolites are layered sedimentary formations created by the trapping, binding, and cementation of sedimentary grains in biofilms, mainly by photosynthetic microorganisms such as cyanobacteria.

The name "stromatolite" is derived from the Greek words "stoma" meaning "layer" and "lithos" meaning "rock," which literally translates to "layered rock." These structures are considered to be the oldest living lifeforms on Earth and were the first evidence of life on our planet. They are important because they provide crucial records of some of the most ancient life, dating back to about 3.5 billion years ago, and offer significant information on the interaction of microbe-sediment interactions, contributing to our understanding of early organic evolution. Living stromatolites are rare, with some found in salty lagoons or bays, particularly in Western Australia and Chile. 

 

Inauguration of the Park

Source: El Pinguino

October, 2019.- 

With the presence of the main regional authorities, headed by Governor Margarita Norambuena, Municipal Mayoress Marisol Andrade, students and representatives of the community's senior citizens, was inaugurated the Stromatolites Park, a tourist space for Tierra del Fuego Island.

The Mayor of Porvenir, Marisol Andrade, said she was very happy to start this first stage of the park given that these mineral structures in addition to arouse great interest for science, they represent an opportunity for tourism.

The project was born with the support and collaboration of Aeronáutica and Bienes Nacionales, being the first step to recover the ground for the municipality thanks to the Regional Government that assigned the resources to create the first stage of the park.

Looking at the stromatolites one might think that they are only accumulations of rock and earth, but there is something else, these are mineral structures built by a type of bacteria over millions of years, considered living fossils of great interest for science and an opportunity for tourism. For this reason, the project was promoted to create a park.

Then, the Mayor of Porvenir, Marisol Andrade, added, "It is a great dream for the people of Tierra del Fuego. This is a tourist project. The first stage of the park involved installing walkways and information panels. All this is so the community has a nearby place to enjoy this natural beauty. Scientific studies show that these beings are 3,500 years old, and we have them living here in Laguna de Los Cisnes."

The head of the Municipality, invited the regional community, because here they will find a great point of tourist development and logically, that must be known by all the visitors who arrive in Porvenir.

The Laguna de Los Cisnes near Porvenir, is one of the six places in the world where these geobiological systems are located, offering the possibility of investigating ecosystems similar to those that gave rise to life on the planet, all just six kilometers from the capital of Tierra del Fuego Island.

Finally, Mayoress Andrade reiterated that in the place there is not only the Laguna de Los Cisnes (Swan Lagoon), but also other surrounding areas, which will allow to offer a tourist circuit of great scientific interest and strengthen a sector that because of its proximity to the city, only 6 km, will become a pole of attraction which will generate work and associated services.