COMPENSATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE IN ECUADORIAN AMAZON

That this House notes the huge environmental and social damage caused by oil giant Chevron-Texaco in the Ecuadorian Amazon; further notes that Chevron-Texaco admits to dumping billions of gallons of toxic waste into the Ecuadorian Amazon between 1964 and 1990; is concerned that this contaminated the rivers used by local people for drinking, bathing and fishing resulting in numerous health issues for the people living there; believes this is one of the world's greatest environmental disasters with the oil dumped estimated to be roughly 30 times the amount spilt in the Exxon Valdez disaster; is concerned that Chevron-Texaco never carried out a meaningful clean up; congratulates the 30,000 local people who organised themselves into Amazon Defence Front and filed legal action against Chevron-Texaco to demand compensation; regrets that over the past 20 years Chevron-Texaco has not settled but used its financial advantage to oppose providing any compensation to the Amazonian communities; further notes that after decades of campaigning in 2011, an independent Ecuadorian court ordered Chevron-Texaco to pay $19 billion in compensation to the affected people; is concerned by reports that Chevron-Texaco has spent hundreds of millions of dollars in legal and lobbying fees to prevent compensation being paid; further notes that in contrast BP established a $20 billion fund to settle claims following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill; and calls for Chevron-Texaco to settle the compensation payment to the Amazon communities for the damage caused.