News & Multimedia from 2016
Ecuadorian Communities Announce Feature Film Project on Epic Battle Over Chevron's "Amazon Chernobyl" Pollution
2 November 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Quito, Ecuador – Leaders of Ecuadorian rainforest communities have teamed up with a two-time American Oscar winner to develop a feature film about their extraordinary two-decade “David v. Goliath” battle to hold Chevron accountable for creating one of the worst oil-related disasters on earth in the Amazon rainforest. Read more...
Big Oil Plays Big Victim in Big Ways
Exxon Campaign Against Environmental Groups and AG Offices Eerily Similar To Chevron's Against Ecuadorian Indigenous
31 October 2016 | Medium
Exxon and Chevron have something in common other than oil these days. They both are playing big victims in big ways to distract from their environmental wrongdoing. Read more...
Armed With New Evidence, Donziger Asks Full Appellate Court for Rehearing on Ecuador Environmental Case
26 September 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
New York, NY – In a new legal filing, the lawyer for New York human rights attorney Steven Donziger criticized a U.S. federal appellate court's decision in favor of Chevron on the $9.5 billion Ecuador environmental judgment as 'lawless' and urged the entire court to rehear the case taking into account critical new evidence that completely undermines the main factual basis for the prior ruling. Read more...
In Canada Enforcement Trial, Ecuadorians Say "Bring On" Chevron's Corrupt Witness Alberto Guerra for Questioning
Oil Giant Also Admits Kaplan’s Flawed U.S. Court Decision Cannot Bind Canadian Trial Judge
19 September 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Toronto, Canada – The lawyer for Ecuadorian villagers in the trial to enforce the $9.5 billion Ecuador judgment said he was ready to question Chevron’s star witness Alberto Guerra on the stand about his false allegations of bribery, but that Chevron appears “afraid” to bring him up to Canada for grilling in open court. Read more...
No Money, Power or Influence, But the Ecuadorians Are Still Here, Fighting Chevron
Oil Giant’s 53-Day Fraud, Denying Ecuadorians Justice in Ecuador Contamination Case
15 September 2016 | Medium
Over 23 years ago, 48 Ecuadorians sued Chevron for massive oil contamination in the Amazon rainforest. Nobody thought they would win. They may never see a dime from Chevron. The Ecuadorians have no money; no power; no influence. But, they are still here, demanding justice. Read more...
"Winter Is Coming" as Chevron Fights Ecuadorians in Canada
14 September 2016 | Courthouse News Service
Two years before a judge in the Ecuadorian Amazon handed Chevron a massive judgment for oil pollution, one of its executives pledged to "fight this case until hell freezes over and then fight it out on the ice." So it's fitting that, after more than two decades of litigation across three continents, Chevron could face its final reckoning over a $9.5 billion environmental lawsuit in Canada, where balmy summer days have started to carry an autumn chill. Read more...
In Canada Trial, Chevron Fighting Desperately To Hide Embarrassing Information from Public
14 September 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Toronto, Canada – Chevron lawyers and corporate executives are fighting desperately to prevent critical and apparently embarrassing information from spilling over into public view during the high-stakes enforcement trial over the Ecuador environmental judgment that began this week in a Canadian courtroom. Read more...
Chevron's Elephant in the Room
Oil Giant’s 53-Day Fraud, Denying Ecuadorians Justice in Ecuador Contamination Case
13 September 2016 | Medium
The elephant is Alberto Guerra, the witness Chevron “prepped” for 53 days to testify against the Ecuadorians and their lawyers on fraud and bribery charges brought by the oil company in a U.S. court to taint the Ecuador judgment. Read more...
The Beginning of the End: Day One of Chevron's Legal Farce Comes to Canada
12 September 2016 | The Chevron Pit
The best part of Day One of Chevron's enforcement trial is that it has started. For the oil giant and its odyssey in Ecuador, this could be the beginning of the end. Read more...
Epic Court Battle Between Ecuadorian Villagers and Chevron Moves to Canada
12 September 2016 | Free Speech Radio News
FSRN’s Shannon Young spoke with Paul Paz y Miño, Associate Director at Amazon Watch, an environmental non-profit that has campaigned on behalf of affected communities for more than 15 years. Read more...
Chevron’s "Hell Freezes Over" Tour
12 September 2016 | Eye on the Amazon
This chapter in the ongoing saga of Chevron's toxic contamination in Ecuador highlights one of the most grievous threats to the notion of justice in the face of crimes committed by corporations anywhere in the world. Read more...
Chevron Once Again Spouts Tired Excuses (aka Lies) for Ignoring Toxic Mess in Ecuador
12 September 2016 | Medium
Today a group of indigenous Ecuadorians take their long-running fight against Chevron to a Canadian court to try and seize company assets there as payment for a $9.5 billion Ecuador judgment against the oil giant for massive oil contamination in the Amazon rainforest. Read more...
In Ecuador Case, Focus Shifts to Canada Where Enforcement Hearing Targeting Chevron Assets Begins Monday
8 September 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Toronto, Canada – A group of Ecuadorian indigenous groups and farmer communities from the rainforest will ask a Canadian judge Monday to stop Chevron from seeking to evade a $9.5 billion environmental damages award resulting from a lawsuit filed 23 years ago. Read more...
On Eve of Enforcement Trial, Canada's Civil Society Calls for Chevron's Assets To Be Frozen So Ecuador Judgment Can Be Paid
Canadian environmental justice, labor, human rights, and First Nations groups blast Chevron and call for justice for Ecuadorians
7 September 2016 | Amazon Watch, Greenpeace Canada, Sierra Club BC, MiningWatch Canada, Friends of the Earth Canada
Some of Canada's largest environmental, labor and civil society organizations have now joined the growing international community demanding that Chevron clean up its toxic waste in the Ecuadorian Amazon and cease selling its assets in Canada while a debt collection action proceeds to force the company to comply with its US $10 billion liability to the people of Ecuador. Read more...
An Open Letter to the People of Canada
7 September 2016
We condemn the actions by Chevron and stand with the affected communities in Ecuador who continue their decades long quest for justice from Chevron for its deliberate contamination of the Amazon rainforest. In its efforts to evade justice Chevron has repeatedly sought to silence critics and continues to ignore the $9.5 billion judgment against it for environmental damage in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Read more...
Chevron vs. the Amazon: Inside the Kill Zone, Part Two
Abby Martin uncovers the oil giant's Amazon "kill zone" to check in on a cleanup that never happened
21 August 2016 | The Empire Files
In Part 2 of "Chevron vs. the Amazon," The Empire Files continues its investigation into the 22-year legal battle between Chevron Texaco and the state of Ecuador, where the oil company continues to damage the environment and the habitat of tens of thousands of Indigenous Amazonians. Read more...
Chevron vs. the Amazon: Inside the Kill Zone, Part One
The Empire Files goes inside the oil giant's Amazon "kill zone" to check in on a cleanup that never happened
15 August 2016 | The Empire Files
In Part 1 of "Chevron vs. the Amazon," teleSUR's Abby Martin takes The Empire Files inside the oil giant's Amazon kill zone to see the areas deemed "remediated" by Chevron—showing how the company never really cleaned the open pits it had agreed to with the Ecuadorean government. Read more...
Power Protecting Power (the Chevron Rulings)
10 August 2016 | Medium
Power protects power. This is a lesson to learn early in life when it comes to matters of the haves and have-nots of the world. Such is the case of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals decision this week in the 23-year-old lawsuit, brought by a group of Ecuadorian indigenous peoples against Chevron for one of the largest oil contamination disasters in history. Read more...
Analysis: Flawed Second Circuit Decision Will Not Stop Seizure of Chevron Assets in Canada
Brief Analysis of Second Circuit Decision in Chevron RICO Case
9 August 2016
The Second Circuit opinion is only a victory for Chevron if Canadian courts lie down and defer entirely to the findings of US courts that improperly inserted themselves in the judgment enforcement process to protect a US company. Read more...
Preliminary Statements on Ruling from 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals
8 August 2016
"We are shocked by this decision. The Ecuadorians' attorneys are reviewing it carefully and will be exploring all options for further appeal." Read more...
Amazon Watch Response to Decision to Uphold Flawed Chevron Retaliatory Lawsuit
8 August 2016 | Amazon Watch
Amazon Watch is extremely disappointed by the decision of the 2nd Circuit Appeals court to uphold Chevron's RICO SLAPP suit filed in retaliation for the unprecedented victory of contaminated Ecuadorian communities over Chevron in Ecuador. Read more...
Chevron's Ted Boutrous Thoroughly Embarrassed Himself Last Week
12 July 2016 | Huffington Post
Anyone can appreciate the irony when Ted Boutrous calls Trump out for his racist comments about a judge while he dismisses Ecuador’s entire judicial system, local communities and indigenous peoples as either too corrupt or too "unsophisticated" to make a just ruling based on the overwhelming evidence in the Amazon. Read more...
In Chevron's Ecuador Case, Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied But, Hey, Football Season's About to Begin
6 July 2016 | Huffington Post
What does superstar quarterback Tom Brady and a group of Ecuadorian indigenous tribes suing Chevron for massive oil contamination have in common? Read more...
Chevron Shareholders Still Wary of Risks from $11 Billion Ecuador Judgment
6 July 2016 | CSR Strategy Group
Chevron shareholders remain wary of the risks from an $11 billion judgment against the company in Ecuador. They also continue to be critical of Chevron management’s mishandling of the case. Read more...
The New Corporate Playbook, or What To Do When Environmentalists Stand in Your Way
29 June 2016 | Huffington Post
As part of their Ecuador strategy, Chevron harassed activists, like Amazon Watch, and environmental experts, like the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW), with discovery requests, and sued litigation funders to deprive the affected Ecuadorians and their legal team of the ability to mount a defense. Our lawyers at EarthRights International defended Amazon Watch and other activists, and – thankfully – Chevron was rebuffed. But defending against these efforts is a huge drain on our resources and those of our clients. Both ERI and our NGO clients had our hands full for the year it took to defeat Chevron's subpoenas. That, of course, was the point and we now realize that we must be ready for the next legal action, no matter how frivolous. Read more...
U.S. Supreme Court Decision Undermines Chevron's Defense in Ecuador Pollution Case
28 June 2016 | The Chevron Pit
Chevron's faltering "racketeering" (or RICO) case against the Ecuadorian villagers the company poisoned with its toxic dumping was just rendered a nullity by the U.S. Supreme Court, dealing another major blow to the oil giant as it attempts to evade paying the $11 billion pollution judgment. Read more...
U.S. Supreme Court Deals Blow to Chevron on Ecuador Pollution Case in Latest RICO Decision
27 June 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
New York, NY – Chevron last week suffered a major setback when a U.S. Supreme Court decision sharply curtailed the use of a racketeering statute the company had been using in a last-ditch effort to delay enforcement of an $11 billion pollution judgment won by Ecuadorian villagers. Read more...
Chevron’s Garbage Fire Sale
27 June 2016 | Eye on the Amazon
Chevron sending up massive flares in Richmond is not the only sign things are getting hot for the oil giant on the run from a $11 billion verdict. Read more...
Indigenous Ecuadorian Leader Confronts Chevron CEO at Shareholder Meeting
25 May 2016 | Rising Up with Sonali
Solani Kolhatkar interviewed Paul Paz y Miño, Associate Director of Amazon Watch. Read more...
Karen Hinton Rejoining Amazon Villagers to Battle Chevron Over $11B Pollution Judgment in Ecuador
8 June 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Quito, Ecuador – Karen Hinton, the press secretary for New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, is rejoining the campaign of indigenous and farmer communities in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest to force Chevron to pay up on a historic $11 billon environmental judgment imposed for the dumping of billions of gallons of toxic oil waste. Read more...
Chevron CEO Watson Shows He Is Out of Touch on Ecuador Litigation, Fossil Fuels
26 May 2016 | The Chevron Pit
Chevron CEO John Watson and his Board of Directors seemed terribly out of touch at the company's annual meeting this week where they were once again pounded by the environmental group Amazon Watch and its allies. Watson simply refused to deal with his two key challenges: the $11 billion Ecuador pollution judgment, and climate change. Read more...
In "Epic Fight for Justice," Activists Descend on Chevron Meeting
Like ExxonMobil, Chevron rejected a host of resolutions aimed at addressing its role in climate change
25 May 2016 | Common Dreams
"This is an epic fight for justice and Chevron management is living in denial if it thinks we will ever go away until justice is served," said Paul Paz y Miño of Amazon Watch. Read more...
Chevron Draws Protest on Climate and Ecuador
25 May 2015 | Courthouse News
"Mr. Watson, stop your racism against us," said Secoya leader Humberto Piaguaje. "We are neither manipulated nor will we ever be manipulated by lawyers or anyone else, as you continually repeat. We are intelligent enough to think and act for ourselves and to seek justice." Read more...
Chevron CEO and Board Confronted for Lying To Shareholders, SEC and Public at Annual Shareholder Meeting
Watson unable to respond to fraud charges and clear ethics violations
25 May 2016 | Amazon Watch
After six years as Chevron CEO and Chair of the Board John Watson has been unable to resolve major shareholder unrest over his leadership. In one of its strongest rebukes to date, thirty percent of Chevron shareholders representing $57.6 billion of assets under management sent a clear message to Watson and his team on the Ecuador issue: your leadership has failed. Read more...
A Planet in Danger: The World of Chevron
More than 30 territories in the world tell their stories about impacts of Chevron activities
25 May 2015 | Environmental Justice Atlas
This map shows 30+ cases of conflict worldwide due to Chevron activities. The Chevron Corporation constitutes an emblematic example of corporate violation of human rights against people on their lands; the company also uses the international architecture of impunity in order not to assume its responsibility for the damages caused. Moreover, according to a study published in Climatic Change, Chevron is the company which contaminated the planet most with its carbon dioxide emissions during 150 years. The aim of this map is therefore to show major conflicts concerning extractive activities led by the Chevron Corporation as well as peoples' resistance and struggles. Read more...
Investors and Activists Hold Chevron's Feet to the Fire at Annual Shareholder Meeting
Oil Company Management Barraged with Criticisms over Climate Change Fraud, SEC Violations, and Environmental Justice
24 May 2016 | Amazon Watch
A coalition of local, national and international environmental and human rights rights organizations once again demand that Chevron Corp be held to account over its environmental and human rights abuses in the Amazon rainforest, at its Richmond refinery, and everywhere the corporation operates. Read more...
Chevron CEO To His Board: Our Ecuador Problem Just Won’t Go Away
24 May 2016 | Eye on the Amazon
We don't have access to Chevron's internal communications, but if we did, this "memo" is what we imagine we might see. Read more...
Chevron CEO Faces Pressure Cooker Over Ecuador, Climate Change at Shareholder Meeting
20 May 2016 | Amazon Watch
Chevron's unprecedented $11 billion pollution liability in Ecuador and its refusal to address climate change are set to dominate the company's annual meeting as CEO John Watson faces increasing pressure from his own shareholders, court rulings, and environmental groups who are accusing the company of trying to intimidate critics and evade its legacy contamination problems. Read more...
UDAPT Open Letters and Statements for Chevron's 2016 AGM
16 May 2015
In the framework of the Global Anti-Chevron Day and Chevron's Annual General Meeting of shareholders, UDAPT has prepared two letters addressed to specific groups of Chevron investors who are generally responsive to environmental topics: pension funds and religious groups. Read more...
Chevron Reeling? Oil Giant Abandons Key Claim In Ecuador Pollution Case
5 April 2016 | The Chevron Pit
Chevron appears to be reeling again in the Ecuador pollution case. The company's options to evade paying for a clean-up of the billions of gallons of toxic waste it dumped in the rainforest – decimating indigenous groups – continue to narrow. Read more...
In Key Setback, Chevron Abandons Last Legitimate Legal Claim in Ecuador Against $10B Pollution Judgment
31 March 2016 | Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC)
Quito, Ecuador – Chevron has decided to abandon the last legitimate legal challenge to its $10 billion pollution liability in Ecuador, dealing yet another blow to the company's strategy to evade a clean-up of billions of gallons of toxic waste that courts found were deliberately dumped into the country's rainforest. Read more...
Alec Baldwin Helps Expose Chevron's $10 Billion Ecuador Pollution Disaster
24 March 2016 | The Chevron Pit
Actor and journalist Alec Baldwin has used his popular podcast "Here's The Thing" to interview human rights attorney Steven Donziger about Chevron's pollution disaster in Ecuador's rainforest. Read more...
Steven Donziger: Oil and Its Aftermath
15 March 2016 | Alec Baldwin's Here's The Thing on WNYC
Alec Baldwin interviewed Steven Donziger on WNYC's program Here's The Thing about Chevron's environmental crimes in Ecuador. Read more...
The Epic Battle to Get Justice from Chevron
6 February 2016 | This Changes Everything
“If I had to bet on it, I would bet on Canada. The Supreme Court decision allowing us to proceed with the enforcement in that country is a big blow to Chevron because it has enough assets in Canada to pay the bill.” Read more...
Chevron At War With Canada Supreme Court; Company Also Faces Accusations of Terrorism and Tax Evasion
2 February 2016 | The Chevron Pit
As Chevron faces a potential litigation catastrophe over its $10 billion pollution liability in Ecuador, we have decided to publish a news summary from the front lines of the historic battle by indigenous communities to hold the company accountable for its "Amazon Chernobyl" disaster. Read more...
Chevron Violates Canada Supreme Court Order By Trying to "Derail" Ecuador Pollution Judgment, Lawyer Says
27 January 2016 | UDAPT
Toronto, Canada – Chevron is under fire in Canada for violating a unanimous order of the country's Supreme Court that Ecuadorian rainforest villagers be allowed to try to seize the oil giant's assets to force it to comply with a $10 billion pollution judgment in their home country, according to the latest legal motion filed in the action. Read more...
Braving Death Threats, Ecuadorian Villagers Ask U.N. to Block Chevron From Attacking Human Rights Defenders Who Obtained Historic Judgment
21 January 2016 | Amazon Watch
Geneva, Switzerland – Ecuadorian indigenous villagers who braved death threats in their battle with Chevron have teamed up with a leading international organization to demand that the United Nations block the oil giant from continuing an intimidation campaign targeting the human rights advocates who obtained a legally-binding $10 billion environmental pollution judgment against the company. Read more...
Here Are Five Reasons Why 2016 Could Spell Disaster for Chevron's Ecuador Strategy
5 January 2016 | The Chevron Pit
The year 2016 is shaping up to be particularly dreadful for Chevron in the Ecuador pollution case despite massive expenditures by the company -- estimated to be $2 billion and rising -- to pay dozens of law firms to try to derail the litigation. Read more...
In 2016, Chevron Faces Potential "Litigation Catastrophe" Over Ecuador Pollution Liability
4 January 2016 | UDAPT
New York, NY – In 2016, Chevron faces a potential litigation catastrophe over its $10 billion "Amazon Chernobyl" pollution liability as rainforest villagers step up efforts to force company assets into receivership to pay for a court-ordered clean-up of what experts consider to be one of the worst oil-related environmental disasters in history. Read more...