Tragic BP Gulf Spill Casts Light on Chevron Disaster in Ecuador

Thanks for bringing this back.

Shelloil, BP, Texaco, Chevron are all pigs. How wealthy do you need to be that you despoil the very Earth?

Chevron's contamination has decimated the traditional lifestyles of five indigenous groups in the area, and one group has disappeared, according to the lawsuit. The pollution occurred when Texaco (now owned by Chevron) was the exclusive operator of a large oil concession in the rainforest from 1964 to 1990.

A 17-year trial against Chevron taking place in Ecuador's courts – moved there from U.S. federal court in 2002 at Chevron's request – is expected to end later this year. Chevron has declared the trial court is "biased" against it and has announced it will not pay any adverse judgment.

It sounds like the Gulf of Mexico got off easy when you compare that disaster to what Chevron deliberately did to the Amazon.

These are the facts of Chevron's dumping in the Amazon and how it compares to the BP spill in the Gulf:

• In the 1970s, Chevron's predecessor company Texaco (bought by Chevron in 2001) perforated hundreds of oil wells across a 2,000 sq-mile swath of rainforest that was home to the indigenous groups. The area where Chevron operated is one of the most biodiverse in the world, containing almost 10% of the world's plant species.
• Instead of re-injecting toxic "produced water" (which contains high levels of salt, pure crude, and the carcinogen benzene) deep into the ground – the industry practice then recommended by the American Petroleum Institute – Chevron dumped 18 billion gallons of it into rivers and streams. These waters had been used thousands of years by the local population for its drinking water.
• The BP tragedy was an accident; Chevron's discharge in Ecuador was deliberate.
• Chevron, as reported by 60 Minutes last year, also built more than 900 unlined waste pits to permanently store toxic sludge – another violation of industry standards. It then built pipes to drain the sludge into nearby streams.
• Chevron also burned gas without controls, creating enormous air pollution and a "black rain" phenomenon in the rainforest.

BK

Watched some of the video over at ATS, regarding removal of BOP last few days - why?

Kat's most recent post was "BOP moved to safe zone".

So apparently there is an "unsafe zone" -- meaning???

Reminds me of post on GLP where person said "old well" - implies a new well.

NOAA watching them is useless also.
Lubchenco had given deep horizon permits against the scientific evidence and towed the BP line during the spill. She also blocked science, such as the South FL scientist who first identified the oil on the gulf floor.
She needs to be out of there.

Chevron and other international corporations who act badly should be brought before the International Court of Law just like a nation would be. Instead, they pick their court and they decidce whether or not they pay the penalty. Law breakers!

BK

Something strange happened around 2:08 on this video Kat posted from ATS - looks like a persons neck and shoulders. I froze that screen shot and asked someone who was not watching the video to take a look (they didn't know what I was watching, and they said it was a man's neck and shoulder).

Here is the picture:

http://img827.imageshack.us/i/nov6personrov.jpg/

Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-2pioSYpsA&feature=player_embedded

It's happens in a flash - so you have to enlarge it and watch carefully around that time.

What do you think it is?

!

Thanks BK. It's so easy to lose sight of these disasters and their impact, thanks to the ridiculous political headlines flooding the media.