Chevron in Ecuador

The archive of the Clean Up Ecuador campaign website


News and Multimedia from 2010

Plaintiffs' Motion to Depose Diego Borja

31 December 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Plaintiffs' motion to depose Chevron operative Diego Borja, who has admitted to having evidence of Chevron misconduct in the trial.     Read more...

Legal Threats Against Judge Nicolas Zambrano

21 December 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In a series of recent legal papers, Chevron lawyers Enrique Carbajal and Alberto Racines threatened trial Judge Nicolas Zambrano with criminal sanctions and prison if he failed to grant their motions asking for a dismissal of the case, which has been on trial since 2003 in the Amazon town of Lago Agrio.     Read more...

Chevron's Desperation, Evidence Tampering, and Insults to Indigenous Culture Growing In Ecuador Trial

Oil Giant's Lawyers Concoct Fake "Forgery" to Cover Up Their Own Pattern of Unlawful Activity At Trial
21 December 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Quito, Ecuador – With evidence growing that it has engaged in blatant misconduct to undermine an epic environmental trial in Ecuador, Chevron is now claiming that the fingerprint signatures of mostly illiterate indigenous persons filed years ago with the court as part of the original lawsuit were "forged" and that therefore the 17-year trial should be nullified.     Read more...

Sanctioned Chevron Lawyers Violating New Court Order in Ecuador Environmental Trial

Chevron Refusing to Pay Court Expert After He Found Contamination At "Remediated" Sites
30 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lago Agrio, Ecuador – Chevron lawyers who were recently sanctioned for obstructing the Ecuador environmental trial where the company faces a potential $113 billion liability are defying yet another court order, according to court papers made available today.     Read more...

Patton Boggs Blasts Chevron 'Threats' in $113 Billion Ecuadorian Environmental Case

22 November 2010 | Courthouse News Service

Patton Boggs claims Chevron is trying to undermine the $113 billion environmental lawsuit it faces in Ecuador by intimidating attorneys who stand in its way. The law firm claims that Chevron "will not be content until there remains no attorney left in this country who will dare provide representation to the Ecuadorian plaintiffs, lest their good name be dragged through the mud."     Read more...

Comedy Video Rips Chevron's New "Greenwashing" PR Campaign

Video and parody ad contest are latest initiatives in grassroots effort that has overshadowed oil giant's new "We Agree" ad campaign
17 November 2010 | Amazon Watch, Rainforest Action Network, The Yes Men

With today's release of hilarious high-profile parody video from Will Ferrell's online comedy powerhouse FunnyorDie.com, human rights and environmental organizations Amazon Watch, Rainforest Action Newtwork, and The Yes Men have unveiled the latest chapter in a national grassroots media campaign that has overshadowed oil giant Chevron's new multi-million dollar PR effort.     Read more...

Fines Against Two Chevron Lawyers Increased For Obstructing Ecuador Environmental Trial

Oil Giant Reaches Into Bag of Dirty Tricks to Delay End of 17-year Litigation
16 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lago Agrio, Ecuador – A trial judge in Ecuador has increased the penalty for two Chevron lawyers found to be obstructing the trial where the oil giant faces a multi-billion dollar judgment for the deliberate dumping of 18 billion gallons of toxic waste, according to court papers made available today.     Read more...

Video Reveals Chevron's Fraudulent Oil Cleanup, Evidence Tampering & Lies to U.S. Judges

Released For First Time on Public Website
12 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Quito, Ecuador – New graphic videos showing Chevron's misconduct and environmental contamination in Ecuador were released today for the first time on a public website, representatives of the indigenous groups suing the company announced.      Read more...

Chevron Sting Operative in U.S. Court over Charges He "Cooked Evidence" in Ecuador Lawsuit, Trying to Quash Subpoena and Avoid Testimony

10 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

San Francisco, CA – Self-described Chevron sting operative Diego Borja, scheduled to appear in court today in San Francisco, is conceding that the oil giant "cooked" evidence to defend itself against a multi-billion oil contamination lawsuit in the Ecuadorian rainforest, according to documents filed in court.     Read more...

Video: Chevron Oilfield Worker Describes Toxic Dumping in Ecuador

8 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lago Agrio, Ecuador – A former Chevron oilfield worker has described in graphic detail how the company ordered its employees to systematically dump toxic waste into the waterways of the Amazon rainforest, according to representatives of the communities suing the oil giant.     Read more...

Chevron Botched Remediation In Ecuador, According To Video Circulating On Internet

Well Site Tested At Ten Times Above Legal Limit, But Chevron Says It is Clean
2 November 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Washington, DC – A video making its way around the internet presents definitive proof that Chevron is engaging in fraud in Ecuador by leaving behind toxic waste pits that it claims to have remediated, say representatives of the indigenous communities suing the oil giant for billions of dollars in clean-up costs.     Read more...

Three Chevron Lawyers Sanctioned For Obstructing Ecuador Environmental Trial

Facing $113 Billion in Potential Damages, Chevron Lawyers Seek Any Opportunity to Delay
29 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lago Agrio, Ecuador – A trial court has sanctioned and fined three Chevron lawyers for obstructing the trial where Chevron faces a multi-billion dollar judgment for the deliberate dumping of 18 billion gallons of toxic waste, according to court papers made available today.     Read more...

Former Chevron/Texaco Worker in Ecuador: We Dumped Pollution into the Rainforest

Former Chevron/Texaco Worker in Ecuador: We Dumped Pollution into the Rainforest

27 October 2010

A former oil operations assistant for Texaco (now Chevron) in Ecuador explains how oil workers were told to dump toxic waste directly into the rainforest environment.     Read more...

Chevron Sting Operative Faces Deposition Under Federal Court Order

Judge Orders Wayne Hansen Deposed, Documents Turned Over as Scandal Tainting Oil Giant Widens
26 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Fresno, CA – A federal court in California has ordered the deposition of Chevron sting operative Wayne Hansen, the convicted drug trafficker who in 2009 engaged in a "dirty tricks" operation for the oil giant in Ecuador that tried to undermine a trial judge, according to court papers.     Read more...

Ecuador Bishop Criticizes Chevron for Its Role in World's Largest Oil-Related Catastrophe

Seeks Assistance of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops As Humanitarian Crisis Worsens
20 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lago Agrio, Ecuador – In another blow to Chevron's image, a prominent Bishop who lives in the area of Ecuador where Chevron is embroiled in a multi-billion environmental lawsuit, has strongly criticized the oil giant for harming local residents with toxic contamination, it was learned today.     Read more...

Radical Chevron Ad Campaign Highlights Industry Problems

By honestly featuring oil industry problems, Chevron "We Agree" campaign scores ad industry first
18 October 2010 | Chevron (The Yes Men)

San Ramon, CA – Chevron Corp. announced a new global advertising campaign this week aimed at showing Chevron as a "real people" corporation, and admitting to abuses that companies usually try to hide.     Read more...

Chevron's Misleading Ad Campaign Ignores Toxic Legacy in Ecuador Rainforest

New Video Provides Devastating Proof of Chevron Toxic Pits in Ecuador
18 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Washington, DC – Chevron's abandonment of hundreds of toxic waste pits in Ecuador is being highlighted in a new video by the environmental group Amazon Watch as leaders of indigenous groups from that country blasted the oil giant for launching a misleading advertising campaign designed to cover up its massive environmental liabilities.     Read more...

Chevron's Ecuador Cancer Problem: 10,000 People at Risk of Contracting Disease in Coming Decades, Says Expert

Oil Giant Faces Up to $69 Billion in Liability for Potential Cancer Deaths
14 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Quito, Ecuador – Almost 10,000 people in Ecuador face a significant risk of contracting cancer in the coming decades due to Chevron's refusal to clean up the billions of gallons of oil waste it dumped into the rain forest, a leading American expert has reported to the Ecuador court where Chevron is a defendant in a multi-billion dollar environmental trial.     Read more...

Chevron Toxic Waste Pit in Ecuador: Designed to Pollute

Chevron Toxic Waste Pit in Ecuador: Designed to Pollute

14 October 2010

Amazon Watch's Mitch Anderson shows us how toxic waste pits built by Texaco (now Chevron) around the company's oil drilling sites in Ecuador are designed to pollute, and continue to spread oil contamination in the Amazon rainforest environment.     Read more...

Chevron's Lead Ecuador Expert Suffers Major Blow to Credibility in U.S. Trial, Court Documents Say

Chevron Hit With $19 Million Judgment After Jury Rejects John Connor's Testimony
12 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

New York, NY – John Connor, Chevron's lead American expert in its multi-billion dollar Ecuador environmental trial, suffered a major blow to his credibility when a U.S. jury rejected his testimony and delivered a $19 million judgment against the oil giant.     Read more...

Federal Judges Beginning To Question Chevron Legal Strategy In Ecuadorian Lawsuit

7 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

New York, NY – Federal courts are beginning to raise questions regarding Chevron's efforts to use the U.S. legal system in service of an effort by the oil giant to derail a potential multi-billion dollar environmental lawsuit in Ecuador.     Read more...

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Chevron Hit Hard In Sworn Testimony Over Massive Ecuador Liability

Gibson Dunn Lawyer Flies Into Panic As American Expert Provides Devastating Evidence
6 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Denver, CO – One of Chevron's lawyers at the law firm of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher flew into a panic during a recent deposition when an American consulting expert began to testify about the massive quantities of toxins dumped by the oil giant in Ecuador, where Chevron faces a multi-billion dollar legal liability, according to court papers filed recently.      Read more...

Chevron Should Pay for Its Pollution in Ecuador

1 October 2010 | The Wall Street Journal

Scientific evidence from experts demonstrates that Chevron has been contaminating an area in Ecuador the size of Rhode Island and taking advantage of indigenous groups for decades. Now Chevron is trying to sabotage a seven-year trial to evade accountability.     Read more...

Chevron Misleads U.S. Courts with Inaccurate Translation in Multi-Billion Dollar Ecuador Contamination Lawsuit

Gibson Dunn's Aggressive Legal Strategy Backfires In Federal Court
1 October 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron has been submitting an inaccurate and misleading translation to U.S. federal courts as part of its effort to evade liability in the multi-billion dollar Ecuador environmental lawsuit, according to court papers filed recently.     Read more...

Steven Donziger Response to Chevron's Campaign to Deflect Attention from Its Liability for Massive Oil-Related Environmental Contamination in Ecuador

23 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

"Chevron's efforts to smear those acting to hold the oil giant accountable for its criminal misconduct in Ecuador is a long-running tactic of the company. I am the fourth lawyer to represent the Amazonian communities in Ecuador who has been the target of what I believe is abusive legal action by Chevron; this is all part of the company's strategy to delay the trial and distract attention from the mountain of evidence pointing to its responsibility for massive contamination in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest."     Read more...

Federal Judge Hits Chevron Over Ecuador Litigation Tactics

Says Oil Giant's Legal Motions Are "Spiraling Out of Control"
22 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

A federal magistrate judge in Tennessee told Chevron yesterday that he would sharply limit any further discovery of a scientific consultant for the Amazonian communities suing for the clean-up of what is believed to be the world's worst oil-related disaster, according to court papers in the case.     Read more...

Summary of Analysis of Damages to Ecuador's Amazon Basin

17 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In accordance with the Ecuador Court's Order, the Ecuadorian communities submitted a legal brief along with six Annexes prepared by environmental, economic, and medical consultants retained by the communities. These expert valuation assessments were submitted to add additional scientific analysis and insight for the Court on the issue of damages utilizing evidence in the record and from relevant public studies.     Read more...

Plaintiffs Up Alleged Chevron Damages in Ecuador

17 September 2010 | Associated Press

The plaintiffs suing Chevron Corp. over oil contamination in a large swath of Ecuador's jungle have raised their estimate of damages to a range of $40 billion to $90 billion. The plaintiffs' previous damages claim of $27 billion had been endorsed by the court-appointed expert in the bitter, long-running case.     Read more...

Discovery Closed In $27B Enviro Suit Against Chevron

17 September 2010 | Law360

An Ecuadorean judge overseeing a multibillion-dollar environmental suit accusing Texaco Petroleum Co. of polluting the Amazon rain forest has closed the evidentiary phase of the trial, even though Texaco parent Chevron Corp. hoped to present more information discovered through related litigation in U.S. courts.     Read more...

Chevron Faces Tens of Billions in Clean-up Costs; Potential Death Toll Put at 10,000 in Ecuador Rainforest

Top American Technical Experts Weigh In On High-Profile Damages Case
17 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

A group of highly respected American technical and medical experts, using conservative assumptions, have concluded that it could cost Chevron up to tens of billions of dollars to clean up oil waste discharged into Ecuador's rainforest and compensate local communities for the damage it caused over the 26 years it operated a large oil concession, according to valuation assessments submitted Thursday to the Ecuador trial court.     Read more...

Judge Orders Deposition Of Chevron's Covert Filmmaker

16 September 2010 | Forbes.com

A federal judge in California has ordered the deposition of Diego Fernando Borja Sanchez, the sometime Chevron contractor who filmed ex parte meetings with the judge formerly presiding over a long-running lawsuit over oil spills in the Ecuadorean jungle.     Read more...

Ecuador Allowed to Depose Witness

16 September 2010 | San Francisco Daily Journal

At the Republic of Ecuador's request, a magistrate judge on Wednesday ordered a man who secretly videotaped an Ecuadorean judge in an alleged bribery scheme involving a massive environmental lawsuit against Chevron Corp. to appear for an Oct. 1 deposition.     Read more...

Court Orders Deposition of Chevron Contractor

Judge Says Evidence Suggests Borja Was Not "Innocent Third Party" but "Longtime Associate" Whom Chevron "Would Pay for Any Favorable Testimony"
16 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Ordering that a Chevron contractor be deposed to explain his involvement in the oil giant's attempts to derail a multi-billion environmental lawsuit against it in Ecuador, a federal district court judge has ruled that evidence suggests Diego Borja is a "longtime associate of Chevron's whom Chevron would pay for any favorable testimony."     Read more...

New Damages Assessments Due Thursday in Ecuador, but Chevron Refusing to Participate

Judge Has More than 100 Expert Reports as Oil Giant Continues to Obstruct Judicial Process
15 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

New damages assessments from both Chevron and the Amazonian communities are due in Ecuador's court Thursday, but Chevron has indicated it likely will refuse to participate despite complaining previously it never had the opportunity to submit its own damages report.     Read more...

With Discovery Bid, Ecuador Turns Tables On Chevron

14 September 2010 | San Francisco Daily Journal

The Republic of Ecuador, which has seen its judicial system come under attack by Chevron Corp. in the last year, has taken a strategy from the oil giant's legal playbook in an effort to defend itself in an arbitration in The Hague.     Read more...

Lawsuit Targets Chevron "Dirty Tricks" Operative Over Ecuador Video Corruption Scandal

Chevron's Diego Borja Faces Deposition in U.S. Over Activities In Ecuador
14 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron employee Diego Borja, the oil giant's self-proclaimed "dirty tricks" operative in Ecuador, has been targeted with a subpoena and deposition demand in California where he now lives on Chevron's payroll within miles of its global headquarters, the Los Angeles/San Francisco Daily Journal reported today.     Read more...

Chevron Fraud in Ecuador: Response to Fortune.com Article

13 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Roger Parloff's legal analysis in Fortune is one-sided and fails to adequately capture the enormous financial risk faced by Chevron in Ecuador, even if one accepts his erroneous theory about fraud regarding an expert damage assessment.     Read more...

Chevron Fraud Evidence Mounts in Ecuador

Bogus Lab Tests, Threats against Plaintiffs Counsel, Ex Parte Meetings with Judge Paint Nasty Picture of Oil Giant's Litigation Tactics
13 September 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Evidence of fraud by Chevron is mounting in Ecuador, dealing the oil giant a potentially crippling blow as it faces a potential multi-billion judgment for environmental damage, representatives of the Amazonian communities asserted today. "Chevron's true complaint is not with the Ecuadorian courts, but with the evidence of its own wrongdoing"     Read more...

Government of Ecuador's Motion to Depose Diego Borja

10 September 2010

Ecuador's motion to depose Chevron operative Diego Borja, who has admitted to having evidence of Chevron misconduct in the trial.     Read more...

Court Filing: Chevron’s Own Audits Prove Company Lied About Massive Pollution in Ecuador

Evidence of Chevron's "Stunning Hypocrisy" and Lies to U.S. Federal Courts
31 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

A U.S. Federal Court has been presented with two separate audits conducted at Chevron's request that show "clear and convincing evidence" that the oil giant knowingly dumped billions of gallons of toxic waste directly into the Amazon and subsequently lied to cover it up, according to a legal brief by the 30,000 Ecuadorian rainforest residents suing the company for the illegal dumping.     Read more...

Chevron Down as It Continues to Fight $27B Environmental Lawsuit in Ecuador

24 August 2010 | FOXBusiness

Despite tripling its second quarter profit last month, Chevron has since fallen nearly 2.46%, as it remains under the grip of a $27.3 billion lawsuit, the largest environmental damages lawsuit ever tried.     Read more...

Chevron CEO Watson Embroiled in Spy Scandal to Undermine $27 Billion Ecuador Trial

Kroll's Sam Anson Identified As Chevron Undercover Operative Running Illicit Program
17 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron CEO John Watson is again on the hot seat after the company's growing spy scandal in Ecuador was highlighted on a nationally-syndicated news program only weeks after he ordered that five shareholders arrested at the company's annual meeting for challenging him over the company's Ecuador contamination.     Read more...

Chevron Submits "Wild" Distortions of Ecuador Video to Federal Court; Conceals Evidence of Own Misconduct

Violates Federal Court Order By Sending Filings to Media
16 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In an explosive legal filing, lawyers for Ecuador's Amazonian communities suing Chevron for environmental damage have submitted evidence that the oil giant is attempting to mislead a U.S. Federal Court with "wild, superficial allegations" based on "snippets" of private video outtakes from Joe Berlinger's award-winning documentary film CRUDE.     Read more...

Chevron Abused Federal Court With "False and Misleading" Use of Ecuador Footage, Says Filmmaker

CRUDE Director Berlinger Provides Evidence That Chevron Violated Court Order
11 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron is facing blistering criticism from Joe Berlinger, the award-winning filmmaker of the documentary CRUDE, for violating a court order and making "false and misleading" statements about film outtakes shot by Mr. Berlinger, according to legal papers filed by Berlinger's lawyers before a New York federal judge.     Read more...

Ecuador Court Invites Final Submissions on Damages in Chevron Environmental Lawsuit

Chevron's Hypocrisy On Display As Oil Giant Tries to Block Relief It Had Previously Requested
09 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In what should be viewed as a gain for Chevron, the Ecuadorian judge overseeing the multi-billion dollar environmental lawsuit against the oil giant has ordered both parties to submit independent damages assessments within six weeks, lawyers for the Amazonian communities announced today.     Read more...

Chevron Outed for Corporate Espionage Spy Scandal in Ecuador's Amazon Rainforest

Atlantic Magazine Exposes Offer to Journalist to Go Undercover to Sabotage $27 Billion Environmental Case
03 August 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron, long accused of engaging in an illegal dirty tricks campaign in Ecuador, tried to recruit an American journalist to take part in a corporate espionage spy ring in Ecuador's Amazon to undermine an expected multi-billion judgment against the oil giant in a high-profile environmental lawsuit, according to an article published in the latest issue of The Atlantic.     Read more...

Statement from Ecuador Plaintiffs Regarding Chevron's Attempt to Obtain Private Film Outtakes

14 July 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's legal theatrics in New York are part of a larger strategy created to evade responsibility for creating the world's worst and longest-lasting environmental catastrophe. Today's hearing was part of a much broader effort by Chevron to launch multiple litigations in various states and countries to hide the company's massive legal and reputational problems in Ecuador from its own shareholders, employees and the public.      Read more...

Leonardo DiCaprio, Woody Allen, Academy of Motion Pictures Join Filmmaker In Showdown with Chevron over Ecuador Footage

Robert Redford, Bill Moyers, Mikhail Gorbachev, Trudie Styler Also Line Up Against Oil Giant In Legal Battle
Key First Amendment Case Attracts Wide Attention

14 July 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Leonardo DiCaprio, Woody Allen, Robert Redford, Mikhail Gorbachev and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have joined forces with celebrated filmmaker Joe Berlinger as he faces a key legal showdown Wednesday with Chevron over its attempt to access 600 hours of private video footage from the film CRUDE that documents the oil giant's massive environmental contamination of Ecuador's Amazon.     Read more...

Chevron Draws Fire from U.S. Council of Bishops, Sierra Club over Improper Ecuador Lobbying

Oil Giant's Campaign to Cancel Ecuador's Trade Preferences Derailed for Fifth Straight Year
8 July 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's lobbying campaign to cancel Ecuador's trade preferences over a $27 billion environmental lawsuit brought by indigenous groups appears headed for failure yet again.     Read more...

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 3: Amazon to the Gulf

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 3: Amazon to the Gulf

2 July 2010

Indigenous and community leaders from Ecuador's Amazon who have been devastated by Chevron oil contamination are making an historic journey to visit with the Gulf Coast communities hard hit by BP's oil disaster.     Read more...

Ecuador's Oil-Waste Victims Share Solidarity

2 July 2010 | Daily Comet

Luis Yanza traveled nearly half way around the world this week only to find that oil companies use the same toxic practices and treat indigenous people in the United States the same as in Ecuador.     Read more...

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 2: Amazon to the Gulf

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 2: Amazon to the Gulf

1 July 2010

Indigenous and community leaders from Ecuador's Amazon who have been devastated by Chevron oil contamination are making an historic journey to visit with the Gulf Coast communities hard hit by BP's oil disaster.     Read more...

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 1: Amazon to the Gulf

Gulf Coast Delegation, Day 1: Amazon to the Gulf

30 June 2010

Indigenous and community leaders from Ecuador's Amazon who have been devastated by Chevron oil contamination are making an historic journey to visit with the Gulf Coast communities hard hit by BP's oil disaster.     Read more...

Ecuador Tribe in Rare Visit to Help Clean-Up Lousiana Oil Spill

Ecuador Tribe in Rare Visit to Help Clean-Up Lousiana Oil Spill

30 June 2010 | Al Jazeera

There has been a rare offer of support from an indigenous community from Ecuador for another indigenous tribe in Louisiana that has been affected by the spill. Al Jazeera's Scott Heidler joined the Ecuadorians in Louisiana's Bay Baptiste.     Read more...

Historic Town Hall Event: Bayou American Indian Tribe Hard Hit by BP Gulf Spill to Host Leaders of Ecuador’s Indigenous Communities Devastated by Chevron Oil Contamination

Event will include presentation by Ecuadoreans on lessons learned about recovery from oil disasters, native cultural exchange & ceremony, music, dance, and community meal
29 June 2010 | Amazon Watch

The United Houma Nation, a Gulf Coast Native American tribe in southeast Louisiana severely affected by the Gulf oil spill, is hosting a cultural exchange with their Ecuadorean counterparts who have been severely impacted for decades by Chevron's oil contamination in Ecuador's rainforest.     Read more...

Report: The Lasting Stain of Oil

Cautionary Tales and Lessons from the Amazon
28 June 2010 | Amazon Watch

What Amazonian tribes affected by Chevron's oil disaster can share with Gulf Coast communities.     Read more...

Cultural Exchange: Bayou American Indian Tribes Impacted by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster to Host Leaders of Ecuador’s Indigenous Communities Devastated by Chevron Oil Contamination

28 June 2010 | Amazon Watch

Gulf Coast American Indian Tribes in southeast Louisiana impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill will be hosting a cultural exchange with their Ecuadorean counterparts who have been severely impacted for decades by Chevron's oil contamination in Ecuador's rainforest.     Read more...

Indigenous Amazon Victims Call for Chevron to End Attempts to Sabotage Court System

Chevron Would Have Opportunity to Submit Information Before Court Issues Final Decree in Ecological Disaster Case
23 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lawyers representing the victims of a massive ecological disaster caused by Chevron's oil explorations in the Amazon rainforest have called on the company to end its reckless campaign to sabotage the Ecuadoran court system.     Read more...

Chevron CEO Watson Joins BP on Hot Seat In Congress For Ecuador Disaster, Nigeria Killings

California Company Facing Renewed Charges of Human Rights Abuses on Eve of Hearing
15 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

BP's executives will be joined by Chevron CEO John Watson as oil men on the Congressional hot seat today. Chevron's Watson will testify today before the House Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment as he faces withering criticism for the mishandling of an oil disaster in Ecuador's Amazon that is considered far larger and more devastating than the tragic BP spill in the Gulf.     Read more...

Key Witness Testifies that Chevron Paid Bribes, Switched Soil Samples in $27b Ecuador Lawsui

Communities Urge Ecuadorian Prosecutors to Interview Chevron Contractor Diego Borja over Massive Fraud by Oil Giant
11 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

A Chevron contractor bragged that he participated in a wide-ranging fraud by Chevron to pay bribes, fake court-ordered soil samples and doctor evidence to cover up the company's culpability in a $27.3 billion environmental lawsuit, according to sworn testimony from a key government witness.     Read more...

Was Oil Named 'Crude' Because of the Way Oil Companies Do Business?

8 June 2010 | Huffington Post

Let me leave it to you; which is it? "Couldn't be" or "certainly possible"? The recent BP crisis could be called the greatest of "natural" disasters. Natural for a company that had already received 760 citations for "egregious, willful violations," accounting for "97% of all flagrant violations found in the refining industry..." according to the Center for Public Integrity, as quoted by Frank Rich in this past Sunday's New York Times.     Read more...

Chevron's $27 Billion Liability In Ecuador "Glaringly Low" In Light of BP Disaster

Chevron Dumped Toxins for 26 Years; Indigenous Groups Decimated; CEO Fights Shareholders; Chatter about Bankruptcy
8 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's potential $27.3 billion liability for causing the world's worst oil-related catastrophe in Ecuador's rainforest – dubbed the "Amazon Chernobyl" by locals – is starting to look like a glaring underestimate compared to the astronomical damages facing BP in the wake of the Gulf oil spill, according to an analysis in The New York Times published today.     Read more...

Chevron Facing Rising Tide of Public Anger Over BP-Like Environmental Tragedy in Amazon Rainforest

Oil Giant’s Actions Over Ecuador Disaster Condemned by Redford, Herbert, and Perkins as Chorus of Prominent Voices Grows
7 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Actor and filmmaker Robert Redford, New York Times columnist Bob Herbert and bestselling author John Perkins are the latest voices to condemn Chevron's desperate maneuvers to avoid liability for the massive oil disaster that has plagued Ecuador's rainforest for almost fifty years.     Read more...

Disaster in the Amazon

4 June 2010 | The New York Times

BP's calamitous behavior in the Gulf of Mexico is the big oil story of the moment. But for many years, indigenous people from a formerly pristine region of the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador have been trying to get relief from an American company, Texaco (which later merged with Chevron), for what has been described as the largest oil-related environmental catastrophe ever.     Read more...

Joe Berlinger vs. Chevron: Why We Must All Defend Independent Filmmaking

4 June 2010 | Huffington Post

Filmmakers like Joe Berlinger fulfill a crucial role in today's society by providing independent information on pressing contemporary human rights and social issues. Their success as storytellers depends on access to those men and women willing to talk on camera. If the subjects of those documentaries are fearful of the ramifications of telling the truth then the filmmaker has no story.     Read more...

Filmmaker's Battle With Chevron Gains Support of The New York Times, ABC, CBS, NBC, HBO, Dow Jones, AP, Hearst, Gannett and The Washington Post

Floyd Abrams, Leading First Amendment Lawyer, to Lead Court Fight for Major Media to Protect Film Footage
2 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's attempt to view more than 600 hours of private video outtakes from celebrated filmmaker Joe Berlinger is now being opposed by The New York Times, ABC, CBS, NBC, Dow Jones, the Associated Press, the Hearst Newspapers, the Daily News, and the Gannett Company, according to court papers filed this week by one of the nation's leading First Amendment lawyers.     Read more...

Tragic BP Gulf Spill Casts Light on Chevron Disaster in Ecuador

While BP Is Largest Spill In U.S., Chevron's Ecuador Disaster Is Largest In World
Chevron Admits Dumping at Least 16 Billion Gallons of Toxic Waste into Rainforest

1 June 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

As the nation remains riveted on the tragic BP spill unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico, Chevron still holds the record for creating the world's largest oil-related contamination and it happened deliberately in the populated Amazon rainforest in an even more sensitive ecosystem than the marshes of Louisiana.     Read more...

New Questions About Chevron CEO in Wake of Arrests, Shareholder Defiance, at Annual Meeting

Human Rights Issues, Ecuador Calamity Drive Opposition; Watson Loses Control in Face of Criticism
27 May 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron CEO John Watson was accused of violating corporate governance requirements and other laws when he apparently lost control of Chevron's annual meeting yesterday, resulting in five arrests of well-known Chevron critics and a stunning shareholder rebuke over the company's $27 billion potential Ecuador liability.     Read more...

Activists Arrested at Chevron Shareholders' Meeting

Activists Arrested at Chevron Shareholders' Meeting

26 May 2010

Five activists were arrested at the Chevron annual shareholders' meeting in Houston, Texas. Activists and people from affected communities from across the US and countries such as Ecuador, Angola, Kazakhstan and Canada had traveled to Texas to make their voices heard. Despite the fact that they arrived holding valid proxy passes to attend the meeting, nearly the entire delegation was denied entry.     Read more...

Chevron Management Hit Hard at Annual Meeting over Ecuador Liability
$38 Billion In Shareholder Value Defies CEO Watson

Board Members Confronted by Angry Shareholders,
Indigenous Leaders; Five People Arrested As Company Refuses Proxies

26 May 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's annual shareholder meeting erupted in chaos today after CEO John Watson received a stern rebuke from shareholders for its Ecuador environmental disaster and a 71-year-old Ecuadorian woman said the company was responsible for an environmental atrocity in the rainforest that cost her two children and was devastating the lives of thousands of people.     Read more...

Chevron Condemned for Human Rights Abuses, Ecuador Disaster at Annual Shareholder Meeting Today

Activists Arrested Inside and Outside Chevron's Meeting
Community Leaders Barred, Ejected from Annual Meeting for Exposing the Truth about Chevron

26 May 2010 | Amazon Watch

At Chevron's shareholder meeting today the company faced outrage for its continued lies, deception, silencing of critics, and human rights abuses. Concerned community leaders from several nations including Ecuador and Nigeria traveled from around the world yet were refused entry to Chevron's annual meeting.     Read more...

Activists Rally at Chevron's Houston Offices During Shareholders' Meeting

26 May 2010 | Houston Business Journal

An international group of activists alleging human rights abuses and environmental destruction on the part of Chevron Corp. was poised to rally in front of the energy company's Houston offices on Wednesday.     Read more...

Protesters Accuse Chevron of Human Rights, Environmental Abuse

25 May 2010 | Houston Chronicle

An international group of activists alleging human rights abuses and environmental destruction on the part of Chevron Corp. was poised to rally in front of the energy company's Houston offices on Wednesday.     Read more...

Chevron AGM 2010 Action

Chevron AGM 2010 Action

25 May 2010

A powerful coalition of leaders from communities around the world negatively impacted by Chevron's operations are gathered in Houston to confront the oil giant during its annual shareholders meeting. Guillermo Grefa and Mariana Jimenez, two people from Ecuador's Amazon rainforest region, are among those speaking out about the "True Cost of Chevron."     Read more...

Chevron General Counsel Misleads Public in Desperate Defense of $27 Billion Ecuador Environmental Disaster

Chevron's Hewitt Pate Issues False Statements Ahead of Wednesday Shareholder Meeting
24 May 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's chief lawyer, Hewitt Pate, is putting out false statements to lay the groundwork for the oil giant to avoid paying a potential $27.3 billion judgment for contaminating the Ecuadorian rainforest ahead of the annual shareholder meeting Wednesday, representatives of the indigenous and farmer communities suing Chevron said today.     Read more...

Chevron Sues Over 'Crude'

A documentary's unused footage, akin to reporters' notes, should be protected
20 May 2010 | Los Angeles Times

Journalism that serves society does not always spring from objectivity, nor is it always written from a distance. When Upton Sinclair exposed the conditions of Chicago's meat industry, he did so on assignment from a socialist newspaper. He went to work in grim stockyards and returned with "The Jungle." The result was a revolution in food safety and the founding of the Food and Drug Administration.     Read more...

Filmmaker Battling Chevron Over Ecuador Footage Receives Groundswell of Support

Bill Moyers, Trudie Styler, Michael Moore, Ric Burns Warn of "Chilling Effect" on Journalists and Whistleblowers
Growing Public Relations Problem for Chevron; Hearing Today on Stay Request

19 May 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's attempt to use a U.S. federal court to gain access to more than 600 hours of private video outtakes of its Ecuador environmental disaster from the celebrated filmmaker Joe Berlinger has run into a groundswell of criticism as the issue heads up to an appellate court for judicial review.     Read more...

Critics' Annual Report Blasts Chevron

19 May 2010 | San Francisco Chronicle

The corporate annual report - that glossy, seldom-read staple of the business world - usually features upbeat words and images showcasing a company's stellar year. The "True Cost of Chevron" alternative annual report, in contrast, features a cover photo of an oil spill.     Read more...

Chevron, Gibson Dunn Suffer Stiff Setback on Ecuador Pollution Case

14 May 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron and the much-vaunted Gibson Dunn litigation team have suffered a severe setback in California federal court in the company's longstanding effort to evade accountability for a $27 billion environmental disaster in Ecuador's Amazon.     Read more...

Chevron's "Crude" Attempt to Suppress Free Speech

14 May 2010 | Huffington Post

Even as headlines and broadcast news are dominated by BP's fire-ravaged, sunken offshore rig and the ruptured well gushing a reported 210,000 gallons of oil per day into the Gulf of Mexico, there's another important story involving Big Oil and pollution – one that shatters not only the environment but the essential First Amendment right of journalists to tell truth and shame the devil.     Read more...

Chevron Lawyers Commit Fraud to Undercount Oil Contamination in Ecuador

29 April 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's lawyers are trying to defraud an Ecuadorian Court by reporting contamination results in an environmental trial using laboratory tests that intentionally exclude the detection of harmful hydrocarbons, representatives of the indigenous and farmer communities suing Chevron said today.     Read more...

Chevron Lawyer Faces Sanctions for Misleading Court Over "Dirty Tricks" Operation in Ecuador

Adolfo Callejas Charged With Hiding Information to Delay Trial
27 April 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's lead lawyer in Ecuador faces sanctions for misleading the court about a "dirty tricks" operation that the oil giant used to try to delay an environmental trial where it faces a multi-billion dollar liability, representatives of the plaintiffs announced today.     Read more...

Chevron Lied To Columbia Journalism Review About Toxic Oil Well

20 April 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

The plaintiffs in the eco-disaster lawsuit in Ecuador against Chevron released information today that proves the oil giant lied to the highly respected Columbia Journalism Review about an oil well site in the rainforest featured in a 60 Minutes piece that aired almost a year ago.     Read more...

Chevron Whistleblower Reveals Evidence Tampering in Ecuador, but Oil Giant Ignores It

Allegations that Laboratory Was Controlled by Chevron
16 April 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron is ignoring explosive charges that it tampered with crucial scientific evidence and intentionally misled the court in the Aguinda v ChevronTexaco environmental trial in Ecuador, representatives of the plaintiffs say.     Read more...

Santiago Escobar Press Conference

Santiago Escobar Press Conference

06 April 2010

Press conference with Santiago Escobar, the childhood friend of Chevron operative Diego Borja. Borja admitted on tape that he had evidence of Chevron's misconduct during the trial, including tampering with evidence.     Read more...

Chevron "Cooked" Evidence in Ecuador Environmental Trial, According to Oil Giant's Own Contractor

Diego Borja & Wife Worked For Chevron & Represented Oil Company's "Independent" Lab To Test Contamination Samples
06 April 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In a series of stunning revelations from recorded conversations, longtime Chevron contractor Diego Borja threatened to reveal damaging evidence "cooked" by Chevron in the environmental trial in Ecuador unless he received enough money for turning over secret videotapes to high-ranking Chevron executives in June 2009.     Read more...

Ecuador Plaintiffs Appeal U.S. Court Decision on Arbitration

Rainforest Residents Seek to Enforce Chevron's Promises to U.S. Courts That the Company Would Litigate Case in Ecuador
18 March 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Lawyers for the Ecuadorian plaintiffs suing Chevron for dumping billions of gallons of toxic waste into Ecuador's Amazon filed a notice of appeal today in U.S. federal court seeking to prevent the oil giant from taking its claims to an international arbitration where the rainforest communities cannot appear.     Read more...

NYC Judge Allows Chevron Arbitration to Proceed

12 March 2010 | Associated Press

A judge ruled Thursday that Chevron can proceed with an international arbitration claim against Ecuador related to a 17-year-old court battle over rain forest contamination in that South American nation.     Read more...

Chevron Faces Critical Hearing over Ecuador Rainforest Contamination in New York Federal Court

Oil Giant Charged With Forum Shopping and Violating Promises to Litigate Claims in Ecuador
08 March 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron will be forced to explain to a U.S. federal judge this Wednesday why it believes it has the right to take the seven-year Ecuador environmental case (Aguinda v. ChevronTexaco) to a closed-door binding arbitration where the rainforest communities cannot appear, in apparent violation of the company's previous promises that it would litigate the case in its requested forum of Ecuador.     Read more...

Petition Delivery to Chevron Headquarters

Petition Delivery to Chevron Headquarters

04 March 2010

Indigenous Ecuadorean leader Emergildo Criollo traveled from Amazon rainforest to California to deliver 325,000+ letters urging Chevron’s new CEO John Watson to clean up the oil giant’s toxic legacy.     Read more...

Amazon Watch and Rainforest Action Network Response to Chevron's Statements About Meeting with Indigenous Leader from Ecuador

04 March 2010 | Amazon Watch

Amazon Watch and Rainforest Action Network requested to meet personally with new Chevron CEO John Watson in order to allow Emergildo the opportunity to deliver a direct appeal, and tell the story of how Chevron's contamintion has affected him and his family. Watson did not receive Emergildo and he was met instead by Chevron public relations executives.     Read more...

Ecuadorean Indigenous Leader Asks CA Lawmakers for Support in Campaign to Demand Chevron Clean Up its Pollution in Amazon

Indigenous Ecuadorean Leader Travels from Amazon Rainforest to California to Gather Support from Lawmakers to Push Chevron to Clean up Environmental Disaster
Senator Fran Pavley and Assemblymember Jared Huffman Host Reception for Emergildo Criollo

03 March 2010 | Amazon Watch

Today, an Indigenous leader from Ecuador is meeting with California legislators and asking for their support in a 16+ year campaign to demand Chevron remediate massive oil contamination affecting over 30,000 people. Emergildo Criollo has traveled from his home in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest region to deliver a direct message to Chevron's new CEO John Watson, along with more than 325,000 petitions signed by people in over 150 countries, supporting his appeal.     Read more...

Pressure Grows for Chevron to Clean Up Ecuador

Indigenous Ecuadorean leader travels from Amazon rainforest to California to deliver 325,000+ letters urging Chevron's new CEO John Watson to clean up the oil giant's toxic legacy
02 March 2010 | Amazon Watch

Today, an Indigenous Ecuadorean leader attempted to deliver letters from over 325,000 people urging Chevron's new CEO John Watson to clean up his company's toxic oil contamination in Ecuador. Emergildo Criollo traveled from his home in the Amazon rainforest to deliver a strong message from his community and supporters: Clean up Ecuador.     Read more...

Chevron, Plaintiffs Seek Gains as Verdict Nears

02 March 2010 | San Francisco Chronicle

As a verdict nears in the long-running environmental lawsuit against Chevron Corp. in Ecuador, both sides are ratcheting up the pressure. This morning, a man who says oil field contamination in Ecuador's rain forest killed two of his children will try to meet with Chevron's new chief executive officer, John Watson.     Read more...

Chevron’s Charles James Leaves Behind "Legal and Public Relations Disaster" in Ecuador Amazon Case

Stunning Fall from Grace for Former High-Level U.S. Government Official
Law Enforcement Probes of Chevron in Two Countries

01 March 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Chevron's curt announcement last week that former general counsel Charles James is set to retire is due largely to his mishandling of the oil giant's "legal and public relations disaster" over a potential $27 billion environmental liability in Ecuador, representatives of the Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC) said today.     Read more...

Ricardo Reis Veiga Explains the Eight Steps of

Ricardo Reis Veiga Explains the Eight Steps of "Remediation"

13 February 2010

Chevron attorney Ricardo Reis Veiga, one of the two company attorneys who negotiated the fraudulent remediation agreement, explains the eight steps of the so-called "remediation" but slips up and admits the oil sites were never cleaned.     Read more...

Response to Chevron's Myths about the Cabrera Report

10 February 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

A point-by-point response to Chevron's misrepresentations about Richard Cabrera, a court-appointed expert who conducted a damages assessment not to the company’s liking.     Read more...

Chevron Hit with Motion for Preliminary Injunction in Federal Court to Stop Arbitration

Ecuador Accuses Oil Giant of Reneging on Promises to US Federal Court and "Triple Forum Shopping"
10 February 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In a blistering attack against Chevron, lawyers for the government of Ecuador accused the oil giant of "triple forum shopping" and reneging on legally-enforceable promises in a motion asking a federal judge to shut down an international arbitration that Chevron is using to try to escape a potential $27 billion environmental liability.     Read more...

Chevron Caught Misrepresenting Facts about Expert Report in Ecuador Trial

Oil Giant "Desperate" to Derail $27 Billion Liability
09 February 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

In its latest attempt to evade a $27 billion liability in Ecuador, Chevron is misrepresenting key facts about a court-appointed expert who conducted a damages assessment not to the company’s liking, representatives of the plaintiffs announced.     Read more...

Chevron Facing Free Speech Problems In U.S. Over Defense of $27 Billion Ecuador Lawsuit

Charges of Intimidation as Corporate Executives "Freak Out" at Houston Marathon
26 January 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Steven Karpas, director of the marathon, told the runners from RAN that "higher ups at Chevron are freaking out" and threatened to arrest them if they didn’t leave. Police then ejected the runners from the city-owned and operated building for exercising their right to free speech, giving rise to First Amendment claims against both the city of Houston and Chevron, according to RAN.     Read more...

Ecuador Class Action Plaintiffs Strike Back at Chevron's Cynical Game of Musical Jurisdictions

18 January 2010 | International Business Law Advisor

The seventeen-year war between Ecuador’s 30,000 class plaintiffs against oil giant Chevron continues its global odyssey, as the oil giant pulls out every trick in the book to avoid an impending $27 Billion judgment against it in Ecuador for contaminating an immense portion of rainforest and devastating the local population.     Read more...

Chevron Plaintiffs Ask U.S. Court for Action

15 January 2010 | The Wall Street Journal

Plaintiffs suing Chevron Corp. for $27 billion in alleged environmental damages in Ecuador are asking a U.S. court to halt the company's bid to bring the case to international arbitration.     Read more...

Activists Ousted from Expo for Chevron-Sponsored Marathon

15 January 2010 | Associated Press

The environmental group Amazon Watch is welcoming new Chevron Chairman and CEO John Watson to his new post with a video and petition campaign urging him to clean up massive oil pollution in Ecuador.     Read more...

Video Urges Chevron to Clean Up Oil Pollution

14 January 2010 | Sphere

The environmental group Amazon Watch is welcoming new Chevron Chairman and CEO John Watson to his new post with a video and petition campaign urging him to clean up massive oil pollution in Ecuador.     Read more...

Amazon Tribes Sue Chevron in U.S. Federal Court to Stop Arbitration over $27 Billion Lawsuit

Chevron Charged with Trying to Use Secret Tribunal to Undermine Rule of Law
14 January 2010 | Amazon Defense Coalition

Representatives of Amazonian indigenous groups in Ecuador went to U.S. federal court in New York today to enjoin Chevron from initiating a closed-door international arbitration against Ecuador's government designed to eliminate the company's potential $27 billion liability for contaminating a huge swath of rainforest and devastating the local population.     Read more...

Ecuadorean Communities to New Chevron CEO: "We Don't Want to Continue Dying from Cancer"

In New Video, affected Ecuadoreans urge John Watson to Address the Company's Damage in the Amazon
Corresponding Global Petition Demands Immediate Action

13 January 2010 | Amazon Watch

Amazon Watch's Clean Up Ecuador Campaign is launching a global petition to Mr. Watson, with an accompanying video-message, asking him to take a new approach as CEO and rectify the human rights and environmental disaster experts call the "Amazon Chernobyl." In the video, community members appeal directly to Watson to visit Ecuador and address the oil company's toxic legacy.      Read more...

Message from Ecuador to Chevron CEO John Watson

Message from Ecuador to Chevron CEO John Watson

12 January 2010

A heartfelt message from the Amazon rainforest communities in Ecuador to new Chevron CEO John Watson: "We don't want to continue dying of cancer." This video message appeals for Chevron to clean up its massive contamination of the Ecuadorian Amazon that has devastated the environment and continues to cause widespread cancer, birth defects, and other ailments.     Read more...