Today, artisanal fisheries management measures in Chile consider the allocation of Territorial Use Rights in Fisheries (TURFs) among fishing communities traditionally exploiting benthonic resources such as Chilean abalone ( Concholepas concholepas ), sea urchins ( Loxechinus albus ) and macha clams ( Mesodesma donacium), among others. Chilean fisheries legislation, the General Fisheries and Aquaculture Law (GFAL) enacted in 1991, allows the establishment of areas especially reserved for the use of specific artisanal fishing communities, through their legally constituted organizations (e.g., artisanal fishermen's associations and fishermen's cooperatives, among others). According to the GFAL, these areas are labeled as Areas for Management and Exploitation of Benthonic Resources (AMEBR), and may be allocated to artisanal fishing communities for a two-year period (upon submission and approval of a management and exploitation project related to a relevant benthonic resource). AMEBR may only be established in a strip of territorial waters ranging from the line of the lowest tide to 5 miles offshore, stretching from the northern border of Chile to the parallel 41° 28.6' south, as well as on inland and interior waters (mainly channels, fjords, rivers, lakes, and lagoons), reserved exclusively to artisanal fishing according to the GFAL. Upon completion of the two-year period, TURFs may be extended to an aquaculture lease in order to further exploit the AMEBR.