President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric Font, leads the start of the underground canalization works of the Santa Marta Canal

Statement from the Presidency of Chile

This is an automated translation of the press release issued in Spanish

This Tuesday in Maipú, the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric Font, led the start of the underground canalization works of the Santa Marta Canal, which with a total investment of 58 billion pesos seeks to avoid overflows of the canal.

In the company of the Minister of Public Works , Jessica López; the governor of the Metropolitan Region, Claudio Orrego; the metropolitan regional presidential delegate, Gonzalo Durán; and the mayor of Maipú, Tomás Vodanovic, the Head of State pointed out that “the piping of a canal, an infrastructure work that can be seen as something minor, is important because it precisely points to the criterion and conviction that all Chileans have “right to a dignified life, to public spaces in good condition, to a city that is not interrupted by inclement weather.”

The Santa Marta Canal evacuates rainwater from important areas of the communes of Maipú, San Bernardo, La Pintana, El Bosque and Lo Espejo. It is also used as a spill channel for irrigation water.

This project will benefit approximately 520 thousand inhabitants, the first stage of which consists of the installation of pipes and drilling of a section of 466 meters, corresponding to the critical sector of the canal crossing with Camino a Melipilla. The following stages of the project correspond to the works of the sections not intervened in the first contract, upstream and downstream, until completing the 5.5 km total length.

“Until now, the canal has not had adequate infrastructure and we know what happens in the winters (…) This project represents significant progress. Together with the Regional Government, with the mayor, with the leaders, we are improving the quality of life of the commune,” stated the President.

Minister Jessica López, for her part, assured that "this is a work that is part of the rainwater collection plan that the city of Santiago has, a plan that covers 630 kilometers of collectors and rainwater conduction. The piping of the Santa Marta Canal is one of the large works in which we are committed to carrying out these works that benefit the community and the city."

The National Winter Plan of the Ministry of Public Works, which contemplates the underground canalization works of the Santa Marta Canal, consists of carrying out a set of preventive works and construction of new infrastructure in channels, estuaries, collectors and streams. This year, a total of 95 billion pesos will be invested.

“We can't stop it from raining. It is desirable that it rain, we need it regarding the climate crisis. But what we can do is improve our infrastructure so that our cities are more resilient,” the President highlighted.