ADC: Plaintiff's Final Arguments in Ecuador Court Show 'Overwhelming' Proof of Chevron Contamination

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Amazon Defense Coalition

Amazon Defense Coalition: Plaintiff's Final Arguments in Ecuador Court Show 'Overwhelming' Proof of Chevron Contamination

Oil Giant's Liability for Amazon Disaster On Full Display In Public Document

LAGO AGRIO, Ecuador, Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Lawyers for the Amazonian communities suing Chevron have submitted the first part of their final written argument to the Ecuador court, outlining the evidence demonstrating Chevron's liability in the $113 billion environmental damages lawsuit and the fraud behind the company's primary defense of remediation.

The court filing -- called an "alegato" in Ecuador -- details in exacting detail how evidence gathered by independent experts, the plaintiffs, and from Chevron itself proves the case against the oil company. A summary of the argument can be found here. The lawsuit was first filed in U.S. federal court in 1993 but was shifted to Ecuador at Chevron's request. The plaintiffs are tens of thousands of persons who live in area of Ecuador where Chevron operated several large oil fields from 1964 to 1990, reaping excess profits by using substandard practices.

Chevron has long argued, as its primary defenses at trial, that no contamination in Ecuador is linked to its operations, that any contamination that had been present was cleaned up in a "remediation" conducted from 1995-98, and that any contamination remaining in the region was the responsibility of PetroEcuador, Ecuador's state-owned oil company which took over the oilfields after Chevron abandoned them in 1992.

Despite Chevron's claims, a summary of the plaintiff's alegato concludes the legal release used by Chevron as a result of that remediation is "null and void" because it was based on numerous false and misleading representations by the company. Instead of actually cleaning up the waste in the area, the limited "remediation" was largely accomplished by simply covering a small number of waste pits with dirt and then using an inappropriate laboratory test that counted only a fraction of the actual contamination to "prove" that the remediation had been effective.

Read more: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/amazon-defense-coalition-plaintiffs-final-arguments-in-ecuador-court-show-overwhelming-proof-of-chevron-contamination-114497884.html

[Judi Lynn]

1. Chevron Accused Of 'World's Worst Oil-Related Disaster' In Ecuador: Alleged Evidence Submitted In La

Chevron Accused Of 'World's Worst Oil-Related Disaster' In Ecuador: Alleged Evidence Submitted In Lawsuit (PHOTOS)
The Huffington Post | Joanna Zelman First Posted: 01-24-11 03:04 PM | Updated: 01-24-11 03:15 PM

Could there be enough "overwhelming" evidence against Chevron to merit a payment of over $100 billion? Tens of thousands of Ecuador's residents are the plaintiff in an environmental damages lawsuit against Chevron, and they believe the evidence speaks loud and clear, which is detailed in the first part of the final written argument against Chevron recently released by the Amazonian communities' lawyers.

Chevron ran several oil fields in Ecuador until the early 1990's -- Petroecuador, a state-owned oil company, took over the oilfields in 1992. The plaintiff claims that in the time that Chevron operated the oil fields, it disastrously harmed both the environment and human health.

The plaintiff believes that Chevron intentionally disposed of billions of gallons of toxic waste by dumping them into rivers and streams. They also argue that Chevron spilled thousands of oil barrels, built and abandoned 900 toxic waste pits, and ordered the destruction of oil spill records. It is possible that the company could be liable for up to $113 billion, according to plaintiff damage assessment reports.

Meanwhile, Chevron argues that Ecuador's contamination cannot be linked to its operations in the country. At the same time, they argue that any contamination that had existed was cleaned up during a past "remediation," and thus, any remaining contamination is Petroecuador's responsibility.

More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/24/chevron-accused-by-ecuado_n_813117.html#s228930

[DCKit]

2. Exxon (Valdez), Union Carbide (Bhopal), Grace Industries (Asbestos), Dow Chemical (Agent Orange)....

Dog, that song never changes, and I can't stand the tune.