Jan
28
Written by:
ECRA Bloggers
28/01/2010 13:53
Chevron refuses to clean up the Amazon's Chernobyl
According to US campaign group Rainforest Action Network, over the course of twenty-six years of oil drilling in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest, US oil giant Chevron deliberately dumped more than 18 billion gallons of toxic wastewater into the rainforest, leaving local people suffering a wave of cancers, miscarriages and birth defects.
The tragedy in Ecuador is so profound, it has been compared to the Exxon Valdez spill and called the "Amazon's Chernobyl." In spite of the tremendous suffering caused by this toxic pollution, Chevron has refused to clean up the catastrophe.
Within the next year, the outcome of a court case sixteen years in the making will be determined by a court in Ecuador. Chevron has pledged that even if it is found guilty in court the company simply won't pay to clean up the site or provide health care, potable water and compensation to affected communities. Chevron needs to take responsibility. But the company won't unless it feels pressure from its customers and the general public.
Send a letter to CEO John Watson and tell him he needs to clean up the toxic legacy in Ecuador.
And tell Watson that Chevron must shift to clean sources energy and adopt sound human rights policies so that what is happening to the people of Ecuador and the rainforest never happens anywhere else.
You may also want to avoid Texaco petrol which is owned by Chevron Corp.