Abstract

In the Tarapacá region, in the northern end of Chile, where the Atacama Desert predominates, humans have developed a great ability to adapt from a very early age that led them to properly manage the natural shortage of water resources. This, over time, evolved into a water culture expressed in infrastructure and collection methods, distribution mechanisms and types of cultivations, forming a true heritage that, to this day, is still alive. Among them, the socavones (drainage passages) of the Pica Oasis and canchones (ditches where cultivation takes place without irrigation) of Pampa del Tamarugal stand out for having made possible the existence of agricultural activity in the driest desert of the planet, something unthinkable for such a harsh environment. This paper describes the socavones and canchones and the history of agricultural achievements associated with this hydraulic infrastructure that was not monumental, but efficient and effective.