Chile creates five national parks over 10m acres in historic act of conservation

• Ex-CEO of Patagonia firm donates 1m acres of private land
• President Bachelet signs 'unprecedented' measure into law

Chile has created five sprawling national parks to preserve vast tracts of Patagonia - the culmination of more than two decades of land acquisition by the US philanthropists Doug Tompkins and Kristine McDivitt Tompkins and the largest donation of private land to government in South America.

The five parks, spanning 10.3m acres, were signed into law on Monday by Chile's president Michelle Bachelet, launching a new 17-park route that stretches down the southern spine of Chile to Cape Horn.