Environmental issues in Chile include deforestation, water scarcity, pollution, soil erosion, climate change, and biodiversity loss, especially in its industry-heavy "sacrifice zones". The country of Chile is a virtual continental island that spans over (2,600 miles) 4,200 kilometers. It is bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Andes Mountains on the east, and the Atacama Desert in the north; it is home to several important eco-regions, such as the Chilean Winter Rainfall-Valdivian Forests, a biodiversity hot-spot that harbors richly endemic flora and fauna, and the Tropical Andes, which stretches into northern Chile. The country has a wide variety of climates due to its large size and extreme geographical features including glaciers, volcanoes, rain forests, and deserts. Chile faces many environmental issues that impact both its people and economy.

There are a series of environmental issues in this country, with a dynamic and diversified economy. Chile's main environmental problems are deforestation and the resulting soil erosion. From 1985 to 1995, Chile lost nearly 2 million hectares of native forest; these forests were destroyed for pulp, and made way for industrial tree farms. As a result, Chile now has the world's largest expanse of radiata pine tree farms and some of the world's most endangered native forests. Chile had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 7.37/10, ranking it 43rd globally out of 172 countries.

Air pollution from industry and transportation and water pollution are especially acute in urban centers. In 1996, Chile's industrial carbon dioxide emissions totaled 48.7 million metric tons. Untreated sewage poses the major threat to the nation's water quality. As of 2001, Chile had 928 cu km of renewable water resources. While 99% of its urban dwellers have pure drinking water, only 58% of its rural dwellers have the same access. Chile is one of the major mining countries of the world and big-scale mining also represents an important environmental challenge. Severe water shortages affecting many local communities were due not only to persistent drought but to structural problems in the policies governing the exploitation of natural resources, including privatized water management; this led to major protests.

There are endangered species in Chile, including the South Andean deer huemul, tundra peregrine falcon, Darwin's rhea (puna rhea), Chilean woodstar, ruddy-headed goose, and green sea turtle. As of 2001, 16 species of mammals in a total of 91 were considered endangered. Of 296 breeding bird species, 18 were threatened with extinction. Also threatened were four types of freshwater fish and 268 plant species.

From 2013 to at least 2023 Chile has been the country in the world with most registered fatal whale collisions with ships. La large number of these collisions have happened near major ports in the regions of Antofagasta, Coquimbo and Valparaíso.

Much of Chile's water resources are privatized due to the 1981 Water Code which created a market based on water rights. Water is treated as an asset where once an individual or private company receives water rights, they can choose to sell or rent water. The concentration of water resources in the hands of a few corporations has resulted in Chile having the highest water rates in Latin America. Nearly 90% of the water rights for hydroelectric production are owned by three companies. There are more water rights that have been issued than there are reserves in some parts of the country which has led to the drying up of groundwater resources. This shortage has particularly affected the rural and indigenous population of Chile.

The mining industry has had a considerable impact on the environment of Chile. One region in particular that been significantly impacted is that of the Atacama Desert, which is considered one of the driest regions in the world. Mining requires a large quantity of water, with much of this water coming from groundwater supplies. Dust from mining operations can also accelerate the melting of snow deposits on the Andean glaciers. This puts a considerable strain on snow melt water supplies which harms the rural communities living in the Atacama. Another source of pollution results from the mining of lithium within some of the lakes in the region. This has the potential to affect local flamingo population as they are reliant on the lakes as a source of shrimp.

The Dominga mining project can severely hurt ecosystems. In January 2023 the project was rejected by the committee of ministers in Chile. As the materials supposed to be provided by the project are necessary for sources of energy like electric vehicles and solar panels, the issue raised questions about the right ways of energy transition, like promoting walking or public transit instead of electric cars.