13 Oct 2005

Chevron Requests Analysis of Extra Samples at Shushufindi-18 To Discredit Accusations Made Against the Company

The Company is Willing to Prove Texpet-Remediated Sites Pose no Health or Environmental Risk

Nueva Loja, October 13, 2005 - Yesterday, during the judicial inspection requested by the plaintiffs at Shushufindi-18 as part of the environmental suit wrongly filed against Chevron Corporation, the company's counsel requested that the Court expand the number of water samples requested by plaintiffs to include all surface and underground water sources neighboring Shushufindi-18.

The results of previous inspections have shown that, contrary to plaintiffs' allegations, water is not contaminated with hydrocarbons but instead with fecal bacteria that is affecting people's health, a fact that plaintiffs' lawyers and experts do not want to acknowledge.

Other Highlights:

  • At the beginning of the Inspection, the Court as well as counsel for parties were able to observe the physical conditions of Shushufindi-18, where, in addition to domestic trash found in the area, a fresh oil stain near the wellhead could be observed. Chevron Corporation's counsel reminded the Court that Texpet stopped operating the site 15 years ago, and therefore, the company could not be made responsible for the site's present environmental condition.
  • In order to prove the effectiveness of Texpet's remediation, and to demonstrate that the Shushufindi-18 site does not pose a health or environmental risk for people, animals or crops, Chevron's lawyer asked the Court to authorize water samples to be taken from two streams located near the well, as well as from water sources used by nearby homes in addition to those requested by the plaintiffs. The company also asked to share all of the soil samples requested by the plaintiffs.
  • Once more, counsel for the defense discredited affirmations made by the plaintiffs who claim that Texpet's environmental remediation effort was a complete fraud. He pointed out that both the designation of sites to be remediated, as well as the parameters by which they should be remediated were established by the Ecuadorian Government, which through its Final Act of September 30, 1998, certified that Texpet complied with all government regulations and freed the company from all responsibilities for future environmental conditions at the sites.
  • Finally, in response to accusations made by the plaintiffs' lawyer that the Shushufindi River is contaminated as a result of Texpet's operations, Chevron's counsel reminded the Court that because of an attack to Shushufindi's pipeline, an 18,000-gallon diesel spill had occurred there last August, which did affect the condition of the river.

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