The oil company Chevron was fined in 2011, but instead of paying the amount, they fought back: the environmental lawyer was sent to prison.
In 2001, Chevron bought an oil company in Ecuador that was previously owned by Texaco. Chevron admitted that its predecessor, Texaco, between 1964 and 1993 more than
released 18.5 billion gallons of toxic water into the rainforest,
thereby polluting two million hectares of land in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
Neither Chevron nor Texaco cleaned up the affected areas, and the toxic puddles still pollute the watersheds of Amazonian communities today.
Cancer, lung disease and chronic skin conditions are increasingly common among Aboriginal people
- can be read on the European Greens website.
In 1993, 30,000 local residents joined the organization "El Frente de Defensa de la Amazonia" (Amazon Defense Front) and have been demanding Chevron and Texaco companies to repair environmental damage and compensate Amazonian communities ever since.
Chevron-Texaco fought for many years to have the lawsuit transferred to an Ecuadorian court in the hope of a more favorable ruling. In 2002, the US court approved the relocation, and Chevron-Texaco agreed to respect the decision of the Ecuadorian courts in the case.
The tide turned: the lawyer suing the oil company went to prison
Legal and environmental lawyer Steven Donziger assessed the extent of the damage in 1993, describing the situation as an "apocalyptic nightmare" after seeing toxic waters and animals covered in oil from head to toe. In 2011, he managed to win a lawsuit against the giant company - Chevron was fined $9.5 billion. 444.hu has not paid the fine since then, instead launching a counterattack, the consequence of which was that the lawyer was eventually imprisoned.
The lawyer fighting for compensation for indigenous people spent two years under house arrest before the verdict, during which time he repeatedly reminded his Twitter followers of the seriousness of the damage caused by the Chevron oil company.
Chevron campaigned against the execution of the Ecuadorian ruling. Amazon Watch reports that the company spends $400 million a year on legal fees, while estimating its own environmental pollution at just $40 million.
According to the European Greens
"Chevron-Texaco sued the Ecuadorian government to avoid having to comply with the Ecuadorian court's ruling - despite the Amazon Defense Front suing the company."
Source: mandiner.hu