July 28, 2005: Headlines: Figures: COS - Malawi: Writing - Malawi: COS - Ecuador: Oil: Environment: Vermont Guardian: RPCV Paul Theroux blames big oil for Ecuador ‘catastrophe’
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July 28, 2005: Headlines: Figures: COS - Malawi: Writing - Malawi: COS - Ecuador: Oil: Environment: Vermont Guardian: RPCV Paul Theroux blames big oil for Ecuador ‘catastrophe’
RPCV Paul Theroux blames big oil for Ecuador ‘catastrophe’
Describing a trip through the oil towns of Ecuador, writer Paul Theroux recently called the area an “ecological and social catastrophe” that includes spilled oil, brothels, gun running, deforestation, poverty and displaced people. Author Paul Theroux served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi in the 1960's.
RPCV Paul Theroux blames big oil for Ecuador ‘catastrophe’
Theroux blames big oil for Ecuador ‘catastrophe’
CAPE CODE, MA — Describing a trip through the oil towns of Ecuador, writer Paul Theroux recently called the area an “ecological and social catastrophe” that includes spilled oil, brothels, gun running, deforestation, poverty and displaced people. In an interview with HalliburtonWatch.org, he placed the blamed on Occidental Petroleum and Halliburton, accusing both of exploiting the region and damaging the ecosystem.
“I was in the Oriente Province, visiting the Secoya people on the Aguarico River,” Theroux said. He went to Ecuador to do research for his new novel, Blinding Light. “An Ecuador-based environmentalist named Manuel Pallares took me on what he called his ‘Toxic Tour,’ ” he explained. The novel begins with a description of his protagonist’s journey to a remote Ecuadorian village, according to an early review in The Observer.
Halliburton, which reportedly makes at least $1 billion in Latin America annually, recently informed investors about new contracts in Ecuador. The Houston-based company has an office in Quito, and sells oil-drilling platforms and energy services to other companies operating in the country, including Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, Arco, Maxus Energy Corporation and Petroecuador.
“The Indians get a pittance,” Theroux said. “They do not own what is under the ground — that is the property of the Ecuadorian government, which makes the deals with Occidental and Halliburton. As there is no EPA in Ecuador, there are oil spills everywhere and leaky pipes along the roads. As far as I know nothing has been written about this region, which is east of Lago Agrio.”
Caption: Lago Agrio, a center of oil production in the Oriente region of Ecuador. Photo Credit: Chevron Corporatio
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Story Source: Vermont Guardian
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Malawi; Writing - Malawi; COS - Ecuador; Oil; Environment
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