Geólogo / El principal rasgo morfológico de escala orogénica en el margen occidental de los Andes Centrales corresponde a un escalón topográfico de entre 1000 y 3000 metros, paralelo a la fosa, continuo y homogéneo que se extiende por 2000 kilómetros a lo largo del margen. Sin embargo, su notoria linealidad se pierde al ser observado a una menor escala. De manera local se ha determinado un control tectónico de primer orden para su desarrollo, asociado a sistemas de fallas inversas de vergencia oeste, evidenciado por el West Thrust System (WTS) en el Norte Grande de Chile y el sistema de Falla Pocuro-San Ramón (PF-FSR) en Chile Central. Según algunos autores, estos sistemas de falla son parte de una misma estructura orogénica denominada West Andean Thrust, que controlaría el alzamiento del orógeno en el flanco occidental de Los Andes. Sin embargo, la documentación actual en el margen occidental del orógeno no permite evidenciar dicha estructura, por lo que el desarrollo de la total extensión del frente cordillerano occidental y su rol en la construcción del orógeno es una problemática de controversia actual. En particular, en la Región de Coquimbo, el escalón topográfico es evidente y abrupto cuando coincide espacialmente con la Falla Vicuña, pero pierde su linealidad hacia el sur en la zona de los ríos Rapel-Los Molles y Río Mostazal, al acuñarse dicha estructura. En este segmento del margen no ha sido documentada la existencia de una estructura similar a la Falla Vicuña con el potencial de generar el escalón topográfico. La presente memoria aborda la problemática descrita, focalizada en un estudio estructural detallado en el piedemonte de la Provincia de Limarí, y tiene como objetivo principal caracterizar la estructura orogénica del margen oeste de los Andes Centrales, en el segmento comprendido entre los 30,5ˇS y 31ˇS, y establecer su relación con el alzamiento de la Cordillera Frontal, evidenciada por el relieve actual. Sobre la base de análisis multiescala, fue estudiada la morfología y geología de escala regional, junto con un análisis detallado de la estructura en la zona en estudio. Posteriormente fue analizada la estructura en subsuperficie, y comparada con sistemas estructurales mayores documentados a lo largo del margen. Se concluye que el principal rasgo tectónico en la Región de Coquimbo es un bloque alzado de Basamento (denominado Cordillera Frontal) que constituye la alta cordillera en la región y cuyo borde occidental forma parte del escalón topográfico en estudio. En la zona, la cobertura Mesozoica se deforma alrededor de un macizo de Basamento, formando un prominente monoclinal en su borde oeste, que coindice con el aumento en la altura del relieve en dirección O-E. Además, la cuenca exhibe deformación interna concentrada, principalmente, en el limbo de dicho monoclinal. Esta configuración responde a una deformación pasiva de la Cuenca Mesozoica asociada al alzamiento del macizo de Basamento en la zona en estudio, a través de una estructura litosférica de vergencia oeste. Esta última controla, de manera equivalente a la Falla Vicuña, el alzamiento del frente cordillerano.

This submission reviews the two successful examples of water markets, one in the developed world, the Murray Darling Basin in Australia and other in the developing world, the Limari Basin case in Chile respectively. Of central importance, we find the commodification of a natural resource, water, through a process of the progressing neoliberal agenda. As regards the outcome of this process in these two cases / while on the one hand the water markets have contributed to a more efficient allocation of water resources from less efficient to more efficient uses, on the other hand, problems related to environmental degradation in the former case and the social inequity in the latter have been unable to be solved.

The distribution of mountain permafrost is generally modeled using a combination of statistical techniques and empirical variables. Such models, based on topographic, climatic and geomorphological predictors of permafrost, have been widely used to estimate the spatial distribution of mountain permafrost in North America and Europe. However at present, little knowledge about the distribution and characteristics of mountain permafrost is available for the Andes. In addition, the effects of climate change on slope stability and the hydrological system, and the pressure of mining activities have increased concerns about the knowledge of mountain permafrost in the Andes. In order to model permafrost distribution in the semi-arid Chilean Andes between ~29°S and 32°S, an inventory of rock glaciers is carried out to obtain a variable indicative of the presence and absence of permafrost conditions. Then a Linear Mixed-Effects Model (LMEM) is used to determine the spatial distribution of Mean Annual Air Temperature (MAATs), which is then used as one of the predictors of permafrost occurrence. Later, a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) with a logistic link function is used to predict permafrost occurrence in debris surfaces within the study area. Within the study area, 3575 rock glaciers were inventoried. Of these, 1075 were classified as active, 493 as inactive, 343 as intact and 1664 as relict forms, based on visual interpretation of satellite imagery. Many of the rock glaciers (~60-80%) are situated at positive MAAT, and the number of rock glaciers at negative MAAT greatly decreases from north to south. The results of spatial temperature distribution modeling indicated that the temperature changes by -0.71°C per each 100 m increase in altitude, and that there is a 4°C temperature difference between the northern and southern part of the study area. The altitudinal position of the 0°C MAAT isotherm is situated at ~4250 m a.s.l. in the northern (29°S) section and drops latitudinally to ~4000 m a.s.l. in the southern section (32°S) of the study area. For permafrost modeling purposes, 1911 rock glaciers (active, inactive and intact forms) were categorized into the class indicative of permafrost presence and 1664 (relict forms) as non-permafrost. The predictors MAAT and Potential Incoming Solar Radiation (PISR) and their nonlinear interaction were modeled by the GAM using LOESS smoothing function. A temperature offset term was applied to reduce the overestimation of permafrost occurrence in debris surface areas due to the use of rock glaciers as permafrost proxies. The dependency between the predictor variables shows that a high amount of PISR has a greater effect at positive MAAT levels than in negative ones. The GAM for permafrost distribution achieved an acceptable discrimination capability between permafrost classes (area under the ROC curve ~0.76). Considering a permafrost probability score (PPS) ≥ 0.5 and excluding steep bedrock and glacier surfaces, mountain permafrost can be potentially present in up to about 6.8% (2636 km2) of the study area, whereas with a PPS ≥ 0.75, the potential permafrost area decreases to 2.7% (1051 km2). Areas with the highest PPS are spatially concentrated in the north section of the study area where altitude rises considerably (the Huasco and Elqui watersheds), while permafrost is almost absent in the southern section where the topography is considerably lower (Limarí and Choapa watersheds). This research shows that the potential mountain permafrost distribution can be spatially modeled using topoclimatic information and rock glacier inventories. Furthermore, the results have provided the first local estimation of permafrost distribution in the semi-arid Chilean Andes. The results obtained can be used for local environmental planning and to aid future research in periglacial topics.