Written by Ramiro Escobar
Thursday, 12 January 2012 09:29
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| The most affected. Cofan indigenous ethnicity, community of Duren. At least three more Ecuadorian ethnicities were most affected by oil contamination, which drastically affected their access to water, hunting and fishing. Their way of life has changed substantially. Photo: Ernesto Benavides/OXFAM (www.supayfotos.com) |
Last week there were disputes in Taracoa, Lago Agrio, Coca, Duren and other cities and communities in the Amazonian provinces of Sucumbios and Orellana inEcuador. Donald Moncayo, an activist who for years has shown the ravages of Chevron, must have rejoiced. Silvio Chapal, leader of the Cofan ethnic group, also hopes for happier times. The Provincial Court of Sucumbíos, Ecuador ratified a sentence imposing a compensation of nearly $ 20 billion from the oil company for the damage it has caused to the Ecuadorian Amazon rainforest.
Today this is considered the "environmental suit of the century," beginning in 1993 in a New York court, but in 1994 it came to the Provincial Court of Sucumbíos. Almost 17 years later, on February 14, 2011, this court issued a watershed decision: the company Chevron, which bought Texaco in 2001, should pay U.S. $ 8,646 million for damages to the people and ecosystem. On top of this amount add another 10% for those affected and even more for the lack of public apology, bringing the total to U.S. $ 18,064 million. The lawyer Pablo Fajardo, who represents the plaintiffs is already thinking about how to prepare charges for a lawsuit that could last between two and five years.
James Craig, a spokesman for the company, told AFP that they are "reviewing the issue," although they may appeal the decision and take it to the National Court of Justice so that the suit is reviewed. For Fajardo, this detail does not prevent the execution of the sentence.
While Chevron is no longer present in Ecuador, their assets could get frozen, as well as their accounts in other countries where Chevron operates such as Angola, Singapore, Venezuela or even in the United States, the company’s place of origin. Even though this seems unbelievable, the possibility of this happening would create more twists, tense turns and difficulties for this lawsuit to continue.
Wells, pools, medicine
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| Dark Trails: water mixed with oil is found in parts of Ecuador's Amazon jungle - what is left of the pools resulting from the excavation for oil. |
To understand the persistence behind this lawsuit you need to have lived in this place with the victims. Both Ecuadorian provinces (Sucumbios and Orellana) are filled with remnants of dark pools (open for depositing the waste from the oil excavations), flaming smokestacks (to expel other waste residues into the air from the oil exploration) and hundreds of tangled tubes and other horrible scenes. This is visible near the Auca oilfield, where some wells are still working with tubes seem to be competing to stifle the Amazon rainforest. This rush for hydrocarbons began in the 60's, when environmental laws were not even being dreamed up.
Texaco began working there in 1964 and stayed there until 1990, when Chevron came to operate the state-owned Petroecuador. According to those who were affected, however, Chevron would only have remained until 1993 and so during these years they dug 339 wells, leaving behind a trail of dirty pools and contaminants. This is why so many people have lived and grown up surrounded by oil waste.
Chevron, in turn, said that in 1995 an agreement was reached with the Sixto Durán Ballén government (1992-1996), making them execute a "remediation plan" which closed 33% of the pools and according to company, these would be their responsibility (they had a one third share in the consortium formed with Petroecuador). The operation of these closures was completed in 1998.
The plaintiffs, however, argue that "there is no document that terminates their obligations" and they have reported that for years, Chevron's strategy was to simply prolong the process. Meanwhile, the complaints of numerous cases of cancer and other diseases continue to proliferate and these are now presented as evidence that the oil contaminants and waste remnants have devastating effects for the Amazonian ecosystem as well as human health.
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| The proof in hand. Donald Moncayo, an inhabitant of the area affected, holds in his hands the remains of oil found in the woods. Had they been left in place in the 80's by Texaco, bought by Chevron. |
Evils in the body and in the forest
It is common to hear stories in the area where those affected live about genetic malformations, skin diseases, miscarriages, and numerous cases of tumors. At the same time it is difficult to say that every case is related to the oil contamination. While one hand may seem evident, on the other the number of patients with cancer has increased in the region, according to Dr. Edgar Chamba, from the Society for Fighting Cancer (Solčava). Chevron defended itself saying that there is no real scientific evidence about the issue and that there is a strong presence of bacteria in Ecuador’s eastern rivers.
Upon reaching the Indian villages, however, evidence from the contamination of the rivers is numerous. In the Cofan Duren community (besides the Cofan, the Secoya, Kichwa, Achuar and Huaorani were also affected), leaders say it is increasingly necessary to travel farther and farther to fish as now the fish that used to exist are in no way as abundant as before.
"The company deliberately threw billions of gallons of toxic water in rivers and streams, poured millions of other hazardous waste crude oil in the open. The overall result is the devastation of the forest ecosystem, the local indigenous communities and one of the worst environmental disasters in history, "said the organization Amazon Watch, which is tracking the case.
Funds for lawsuits?
"Hunting is also lacking," says Chapal, a professor from the affected communities. So now there is more focus on handicrafts. The surrounds are littered with smokestacks, pipes and wells without any kind protection and this is all visible from the road as part of an unfortunate landscape, which despite everything still retains its strength and beauty.
Last December Mitch Anderson, a member of Amazon Watch, said that Chevron offered a large sum of money for the Yasuni initiative (which seeks not to exploit the oil that exists below Yasuni national park, in order to mitigate global warming). The amount could have been motivation from the filing of the suit against the company. It's just a speculation, but it leaves a bitter taste in relation to how some toy with the Amazon.
