From: verde@acecol.ecx.ec
To: alertav@igc.apc.org
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 1995 04:06:35
Subject: Carta a Accionistas de Maxus
Priority: normal
Organization: Acci'on Ecol'ogica
PUBLIC LETTER TO MAXUS SHAREHOLDERS
This last 10th of May [1995], the Board of Directors of Petroecuador
made public that oil Company Maxus has caused an enormous lost
to the Ecuadorean State Treasury by draining off the oil
reserves of the Tivacuno and Bogi-Capir.5on fields, as they didn't
deliver any money whatsoever for the 35,000 daily barrils of oil
that they extract . This amounts to USD.595,000, which means
they steal 12'775,000 barrils that total USD.2l7'175.000 per
year.
On the 15th of May, the local newspaper El Comercio informs that
Maxus will stay in the country despite this unlawfulness. This
desition is unacceptable since their behaviour can be qualified
as delinquency and should be sanctioned by Ecuadorean law.
Among the damages, the environmental lost should also be
considered as well as the crude they have stolen..
These are the results of the damages on the part of the Maxus
Company:
- sack of genetic resources from one of the reachest biogenetic areas of the world which is the Yasuni National Park;
- deforestation of 29.355has. of primary rain forest;
- gas flares burning 40.000 cubic feet of natural gas per day released to the atmosphere;
- toxic fluids released to the rivers and streams of Yasuni National Park;
- overflowing of the pits; toxic mods spread around;
- activities outside of the scope of its contract with particular benefit to the enterprise;
- tons of sand and gravel removed from the banks of rivers;
- consequent damages to the acuatic fauna and microfauna;
- disruption of hunting and fishing due to the constant noise, subsistence practice of the Huaorani, Quichua and Cofan cultures located in this area;
- oil spills at the AMO2 and BOGI A4 wells, betwen others;
- systematic destruction of the Huaorani culture;
- violations of the: Treaty 107, Art.4 of International Workers; Universal Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 3rd part, paragraph 14; Constitution of Ecuador, all points of art 19; Civil Code, all points of Title 29, book 1; Biodiversity Agreement.
The AMAZON FOR LIFE CAMPAIGN had first denounced the presence in
the country of CONOCO (Du Pont Subsidiary) in the Oil Block 16
and then of its predecessor Maxus, author of all these
illegalities. Considering the present situation we insist in
the following:
- demand an Environmental Audit stablishing the corresponding sanctions to the Maxus Enterprise;
- proceed with reparations to the environmental damages;
- establisment of the corresponding compensation for damages as well as a procedure to paralize all oil activities within Yasuni National Park.
If you are interested in not being accomplice of this ecocide we
urge you to remove your stockhoding from this company.To:
Presidence of the Republic of Ecuador; USA Embassy; Argentina
Embassy; Maxus in Ecuador and in the USA; YPF Argentina;
Contraloria General del Estado, Petroecuador; CONFENIAE;
CONAIE; Ministries of: Energy and Mines. Defence;
Agriculture; Information and Tourism; INEFAN; CEDENMA;
Environment Commission of the Ecuadorean Congress; Maxus
Shareholders; oil companies in Ecuador; SKEPHI of Indonesia;
CIDDEBENI of Bolivia; Amigransa of Venezuela; national and
international news media.
More information: Ivonne Ramos, Ph.&Fx.593-2-547516, E mail:
amazonia@acecol.ecx.ec