Re-posted from BBC News

20 September 2011

A US court has overturned a block on Ecuadoreans collecting damages totalling $18.2bn (£11.5bn) from Chevron over Amazon oil pollution.

The order reversed a previous judge’s ruling that froze enforcement of the fine outside Ecuador.

But it is not the end of the legal saga, which is also going through the courts in Ecuador.

Texaco, which merged with Chevron in 2001, was accused of dumping toxic materials in the Ecuadorean Amazon.

In February, an Ecuadorean court ruled that Chevron should pay to clean up pollution, awarding damages of more than $9bn as well as punitive damages of more than $8bn.

But Chevron, which argues that this judgement was fraudulent, successfully appealed to a New York judge to have collection of the fine blocked.

That decision was overturned on Monday, when the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York lifted the injunction.

Full article

Image: Humberto Piguaje, Tribal Leader, Secoya of the Ecuadorian Amazon, after the Chevron Shareholders meeting May 2011. Photo credit: Todd Sanchioni

Emem Okon at True Cost of Chevron Press Conference before 2011 Chevron Shareholders meeting

I am here to represent the women of the Niger Delta who live in communities near gas flares and who suffer health issues of infertility, early menopause, miscarriages, cancer, rashes; women who fish in waters polluted by Chevron; who drink Chevron polluted water because there is no other source of drinking water; women whose traditional means of livelihood of farming and fishing have been destroyed by Chevron oil business activities; the women who confronted Chevron years back over the injustice perpetrated by Chevron in their communities. Chevron claims to recognize the value of fresh water as a fundamental social, environmental and economic resource but Chevron pollutes the fresh water in the Niger Delta with impunity. I have questions from the Niger Delta women: WHEN WILL CHEVRON STOP ENVIRONMENTAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN? WHEN WILL CHEVRON STOP THE TOXIC FLARES IN THE NIGER DELTA? WHEN WILL CHEVRON STOP DESTROYING THE HEALTH AND WELL BEING OF THE WOMEN IN THE NIGER DELTA REGION? If Chevron is not ready to stop the toxic flares, Niger Delta Women say:  ‘LEAVE THE OIL IN THE SOIL’

- Emem Okon, May 24, 2011

At a press conference today in San Francisco, Emem Okon from Nigeria and over one dozen community leaders from Angola, Ecuador, Indonesia, Alaska, Texas, across California, and more gathered at a Chevron gas station to expose the harms of Chevron’s operations in the communities where they live and advocate. See JINN’s photography from the event and  join JINN at the protest tomorrow at Chevron’s corporate headquarters to support those whose lives have been harmed by Chevron’s outdated practices.

All photos:  Todd Sanchioni

UPDATE 2-Ecuador plaintiffs appeal Chevron damages award
6:07pm EST, By Victor Gomez, Reuters

Indigenous farmers say $8.6 bln in damages not enough

Chevron says charges of polluting the jungle are false (Recasts, adds plaintiffs appeal, updates throughout)

LAGO AGRIO, Ecuador, Feb 17 (Reuters) – Ecuadoreans suing U.S. oil giant Chevron Corp (CVX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for environmental damages on Thursday appealed a recent court ruling that awarded them $8.6 billion, claiming that more money would be needed for cleanup efforts.

Residents of Ecuador’s Amazon jungle say that Texaco, which was later acquired by Chevron, dumped polluted water into their rivers and left drilling waste to fester in unlined pits, charges that the company denies.

At $8.6 billion, the damages figure is one of the biggest environmental judgments ever. But plaintiffs say more money will be needed to clean up the Rhode Island-sized swath of rainforest that they accuse Texaco of wrecking when it operated in area during the 1970s and 1980s. [ID:nN16261158]

In their appeal before a three-judge panel at Sucumbios provincial court, in the heart of Ecuador’s Amazon region, the plaintiffs did not say how much they are seeking in damages.

“We do not have an economic figure. It is an open petition,” lead lawyer Pablo Fajardo told Reuters.

The long legal battle in Ecuador, which has spawned related actions in U.S. courts and international arbitration, is seen as a test case widely watched by international oil companies wary of precedents for other major damage claims.

Chevron inherited the case when it bought Texaco in 2001. It says it cleaned up all waste pits it was responsible for before turning the sites over to Ecuador’s state-owned oil firm, Petroecuador, which still operates in the area.

Chevron says the 17-year-old legal saga has been driven more by greedy trial lawyers than concern for the environment.

Calling the charges false, Chevron says it will seek to overturn Monday’s ruling by Sucumbios court judge Nicolas Zambrano that found the company responsible for pollution.

Resolution could still be years away, and few analysts expect the company to pay anything soon, if at all. Chevron’s stock price was not hit by the Feb. 14 ruling, as investors had widely expected the verdict.

ENFORCEMENT SUSPENDED

Company lawyers filed a 31-page request with the court on Thursday, asking to clarify points included in its ruling.

“Our filing today has the same effect as an appeal in that it suspends the enforcement or execution of the verdict,” Chevron spokesman James Craig told Reuters.

“The judge must resolve our request for clarification of his ruling and, upon doing that, the company will have 72 hours to file its appeal,” he said.

Zambrano’s tiny courtroom is in a rundown building in an Amazon town called Lago Agrio near the Colombian border.

In its request for clarification of his Monday ruling, Chevron wants to know more about the formula that Zambrano used to come up with his damages assessment.

The company is also asking the judge if he viewed outtakes from the 2009 documentary “Crude” that were subpoenaed by Chevron as part of U.S. court proceedings related to the case.

The company says the clips, which did not appear in the film, show evidence of fraud on the part of the plaintiffs. [ID:nN10247574] (Additional reporting by Alexandra Valencia in Quito, writing by Hugh Bronstein; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Cynthia Osterman)

Chevron fined $8bn over Amazon ‘contamination’, by Dominic Rushe and Rory Carroll, guardian.co.uk, Monday 14 February 2011 23.30 GMT

Ecuadorian judge finds oil giant responsible for widespread damage to Amazon basin caused by drilling

An Ecuadorian judge has ruled that Chevron was responsible for widespread contamination of the country’s Amazon basin and fined the company $8bn (£5bn). The oil firm blasted the ruling as a “fraud”.

Pablo Fajardo, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, told Associated Press the judgement at the provincial court of justice of Sucumbíos in Lago Agrio was “a great step that we have made towards the crystallisation of justice”, but the fine was too small – far below the $27.3bn sought by the plaintiffs – and they may appeal.

The epic and bitterly fought lawsuit over the “Amazon Chernobyl” has been going on for 18 years. It was brought on behalf of 30,000 people whose health and environment were allegedly damaged by chemical-laden waste water dumped by Texaco’s operations from 1972 to 1990. Chevron bought Texaco in 2001.

The lawsuit alleges that Chevron should be held responsible for $27bn in damages from illness, deaths and economic loss suffered by the Amazon residents. The case was the subject of 2009′s award-winning documentary Crude and has attracted celebrity supporters including Sting, Trudie Styler and Daryl Hannah.

The case goes back to the 1970s when Texaco partnered the government oil company PetroEcuador to drill wells. Texaco ended its Ecuadorian operations in the 1990s and was assigned responsibility for cleaning up sites proportional to its share in the project. The company spent $40m on the clean-up and argues that it was legally released from further claims or liabilities. But the suit claims the clean-up failed to address faulty drilling practices by Texaco that caused damage to wide areas of jungle and harmed indigenous people.

The case has triggered a slew of related legal action in the US and international courts and has led to an arbitration case in The Hague. This month Chevron lawyers sued a group of trial lawyers and consultants, claiming they were organising a campaign to rig the Ecuadorian court system in a bid to win billions in the pollution claim.

Last week an international arbitration panel in The Hague ordered Ecuador to “take all measures at its disposal to suspend or cause to be suspended the enforcement or recognition within and without Ecuador of any judgment” against Chevron in the case. Chevron had claimed that Ecuador was violating the terms of a 1997 trade pact with the US.

A 2009 US state department report entitled Investment Climate Statement for Ecuador stated: “Systemic weakness and susceptibility to political or economic pressures in the rule of law constitute the most important problem faced by US companies investing in or trading with Ecuador.” The report claimed “corruption is a serious problem in Ecuador,” and that “the courts are often susceptible to outside pressure and bribes”.

Chevron said the judgment was “illegitimate and unenforceable”, adding: “It is the product of fraud and is contrary to the legitimate scientific evidence. Chevron will appeal against this decision in Ecuador and intends to see that justice prevails.

“United States and international tribunals already have taken steps to bar enforcement of the Ecuadorian ruling. Chevron does not believe that today’s judgment is enforceable in any court that observes the rule of law. Chevron intends to see that the perpetrators of this fraud are held accountable for their misconduct.”

In contrast, the advocacy groups Amazon Watch and Rainforest Action Network hailed the ruling. “It is time Chevron cleans up its disastrous mess in Ecuador.”

On the possibility of appealing, Fajardo said: “We believe the evidence before the court deserves international respect and the plaintiffs will take whatever actions are appropriate consistent with the law to press the claims to a final conclusion.”

Judge Nicolas Zambrano, who made the ruling from the provincial town of Lago Agrio, gave Chevron 60 days to set up an escrow account in Ecuador through which the damages would be distributed. Analysts said appeals meant the case probably had years to run but that the oil industry had been dealt a warning to clean up its act.

According to a report by Sweden’s Umeå International School of Public Health more than 30bn gallons of toxic wastes and crude oil had been discharged into the land and waterways of Ecuador’s Amazon basin – or “Oriente”. This compares to the 10.8m gallons spilled in the Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989 in Alaska or 205m gallons spilt in BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster. The report claims there are at least two big oil spills per week in the area.

The oil industry is more powerful today than at any other time in history save the early 20th century. Thanks to last year’s record run-up in oil prices, seven of the world’s most valuable corporations are now oil companies. Yet just one of those companies has become the focus of intense consumer ire.

Perhaps the largest coordinated activist campaign in history is being launched against the San Ramon-based Chevron Corporation. Foregoing boycotts and other traditional market campaign techniques, non-governmental organizations are creatively communicating the business case for why Chevron should change its ways, focusing on mobilizing company shareholders and consumers to compel the company to come clean and pursue social and environmental leadership.

This unprecedented campaign to make Chevron the poster child of corporate irresponsibility has already persuaded pension funds in California, Maryland, New York, and Pennsylvania to consider selling a total of $12 billion in Chevron shares on the grounds that the firm is mismanaging its operations around the globe. The prime focus of this ongoing anti-Chevron effort has been the company’s annual shareholder meetings, but protests at the Richmond refinery and a series of movie and PR stunts have been also been effective tactics….Read full article

Nigeria Section of article:

Nigeria may represent Chevron’s toughest challenge yet. What happens in Nigeria could have major impacts on future operations in a continent destined to become the top oil producer for the United States in the coming decades. In fact, Africa already supplies the United States with more oil than the Middle East.

Nigeria’s population of 150 million people makes it the most populous country in Africa. The country is torn by cultural and religious strife. The north is predominately Muslim and has traditionally dominated governing structures. The south is comprised primarily of poor Christian populations living near the oil reserves in the Niger Delta, a former fishing community. These southerners traditionally have not had much voice in governmental affairs.

Oil operations have decimated fish populations, interrupting the traditional way of life in the Niger Delta. Many villagers write long detailed letters to Chevron about the impacts oil operations have on their lives — but they never get a response. Chevron employees live in barricades so they have no interaction with the local population. As of late, villagers have become armed and steal oil — locals call it “bunkering” — and Chevron has begun to bribe armed rebels to allow oil to get to market, further entrenching a culture of corruption in Nigeria.

“Oil is so lucrative that a web of mysterious relationships between oil companies, the government, militants, and communities has evolved,” said Laura Livoti, founder of Justice in Nigeria Now, and a longtime activist and radio reporter. Without her group, the issues surrounding oil and this troubled African country would never make the news and become part of the ongoing dialogue about how to reform Chevron and other oil companies operating there. The media tends to ignore what happens in this part of the world, but Livoti’s group, with a staff of two, is determined to change that.

Earlier this year, for example, 20,000 villagers were displaced during a government-backed crackdown funded by Chevron. “No humanitarian aid was allowed, no journalists, no human-rights observers. Military rogues blew up facilities, which shut down the oil industry. Things got so bad, Chevron pulled out all non-essential employees,” Livoti said.

It was this development that prompted the government to offer an amnesty program for militants this past May. While many balked, a large number have come forward to accept amnesty, except the militants most committed to political ideals as well as genuine solutions to local poverty.

The militants and ongoing corruption in Nigeria complicates things. “When the Nigerians were peaceful protestors, it was a lot easier to gain sympathy,” acknowledged Livoti. “Now that an armed resistance as risen up in Nigeria, attracting sympathy — and financial support — is much more difficult,” she said.  Read Full article

Proxies representing Nigeria, Ecuador, the Philippines, Burma, Iraq, Richmond and Kazakhstan return from speaking to Chevron's Shareholders - AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

JINN is a member of the diverse coalition of organizations and individuals  who wrote and released The True Cost of Chevron: An Alternative Annual Report on May 26  in time for Chevron’s shareholder meeting on May 27.  Several members of the coalition presented the report to shareholders, the board of directors and Chevron’s CEO David O’ Reilly inside the shareholder meeting.  O’ Reilly responded by saying the report belonged in the trash can and that he was personally insulted by the statements made by the proxies who represented Chevron affected communities around the world.  Read the Full Press Release from the Coalition

Our ally from the Niger Delta, human rights activist, Tunde Okorodudu was able to speak inside the shareholder meeting. He said:  “David O’ Reilly showed nothing but disrespect to all those who traveled from around the world to address the shareholder meeting, Chevron has done nothing but enable the culture of violence that now permeates my region.”

A subvertisement ad campaign, designed by Underground Ads accompanied the release of the report.

"Chevron refuses to clean up its mess in Nigeria." Ads designed by Underground Ads

Below is the announcement for the report and website with full information. Read the report and spread the word!  TrueCostofChevron.com

The True Cost of Chevron An Alternative Annual Report May 2009
Amazon Watch · CorpWatch · Crude Accountability · Environmental Rights Action EarthRights International · Filipino-American Coalition for Environmental Solidarity · Global Exchange Justice in Nigeria Now · Mpalabanda · Rainforest Action Network · Richmond Progressive Alliance Trustees for Alaska · US Labor Against the War · West County Toxics Coalition
Think you know Chevron? Think again.Chevron’s 2008 annual report is a glossy celebration of the company’s most profitable year in its history. What Chevron’s annual report does not tell its shareholders is the true cost paid for those financial returns, or the global movement gaining voice and strength against Chevron’s abuses. Thus, we, the communities and our allies who bear the consequences of Chevron’s oil and natural gas production, refineries, depots, pipelines, exploration, offshore drilling rigs, coal fields, chemical plants, political control, consumer abuse, false promises, and much more, have prepared an Alternative Annual Report for Chevron. The True Cost of Chevron: An Alternative Annual Report is a one-stop-shop for activists, policy makers, journalists, investors, analysts, and communities in struggle.It is the most comprehensive exposé of Chevron’s operations – and the communities in struggle against them – ever compiled. It includes reports from Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, the Gulf Coast, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Utah, Washington, D.C, and Wyoming; internationally across Angola, Burma, Canada, Chad, Cameroon, Ecuador, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, and the Philippines. Antonia Juhasz is the lead author and editor of the report, which includes the writings of sixteen additional authors from across the U.S. and around the world and the contributions of dozens of organizations. The 44-page report is available to download at TrueCostofChevron.com – a visually stunning website using our ChevWrong “Inhumane Energy” ads that reveal the hypocrisy of Chevron’s human energy ad campaign. The report and the ads can be downloaded for free from the website, which also provides links to the organizations involved in the True Cost of Chevron campaign and more. Photo LEFT: Fire burning at Chevron Pascagoula, MS refinery, photograph by Christy Pritchett ran August 17, 2007. Courtesy of the Press-Register 2007 © All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.