Southern Chile forest cover represents a major environmental issue. The native forest, integrated into the Valvidian Ecoregion (35°S-48°S), belongs to ecosystems with the highest conservation priority in the world. The application of the Decree Law 701 in 1974 generated the expansion of pines and eucalyptus monocultures in Southern Chile. The intensification of silvicultural practices, combined with the substitution of native forested ecosystems, reappraises their sustainability on both short and mid-term. This study wishes to apprehend and anticipate timber plantation dynamics on several spatial and temporal scales to identify tomorrow's land occupation issues. In a first phase, the use of MODIS medium-resolution remotely sensed data enables the detection and quantification of timber cutting and stable forests from the 8th region of the Bio-Bio to the continental south of the 10th region of Los Lagos. In a second phase, turning to LANDSAT images enables to specify the rotation cycle of industrial plantations on a scale of two regions. Finally, a multi-date classification is used to build a data base in order to study land use and cover changes in the municipality of San Juan de la Costa. Between 1986 and 2008, the spread of monoculture at the expense of native forest and other types of land occupation reaches respectively 3 366 ha and 6 132 ha. Even though the identification of the explanatory factors together with retrospective analysis highlights the complexity of the system, four prospective scenarios are offered. They give us a panoramic vision of the timber plantations future dynamics, as well as those of the native forest. If the predictive and intensive scenarios express an expansion of the monospecific plantations in 2017 and 2026, the exploratory and “eco-centered” scenarios bring a vision that goes against the grain, with a resurgence of native forest and a decline in plantations by 2035. The crossing of the scenarios establishes a degree of spatial congruence and brings information that can help decision-making.
