Oil spill in Ecuador affects Napo communities

The rupture in the Heavy Crude Oil Pipeline (OCP) caused a considerable oil spill in the Piedra Fina sector, in the province of Napo, on the afternoon of this Friday, January 28, 2022.

The incident occurred around 5:06 p.m., as reported by the same OCP. The company explained that the rupture occurred in an area where the tube is not directly exposed to rivers, so the flow of oil has already been controlled.

🆘#URGENTE Denunciamos un nuevo derrame de petróleo en las riberas del río Coca, NUEVAMENTE una rotura del OCP.
Exigimos a @RecNaturalesEC @Ambiente_Ec @OCPEcuador @DEFENSORIAEC @DDHH_Ec tomar cartas en el asunto. pic.twitter.com/P1I8gXKGWq

— Acción Ecológica (@AcEcologica) January 29, 2022

The disaster was generated due to the fall of rocks, due to heavy rains in the area, affecting four pipes of the oil transport infrastructure.

The oil spill and its effects on nature were recorded in videos and photographs circulating on social networks.

According to the manager of OCP, Roberto Grijalva, all the corresponding measures have been arranged to prevent any environmental damage and for this, according to him, all the necessary resources have been arranged to fulfill said commitment.

Meanwhile, the General Secretariat of Communication reported that as part of the contract maintained by OCP, for the transportation of oil, there is an insurance policy for civil liability and damage to the environment to cover this type of event.

The authorities clarified that the reception of crude oil and scheduled exports have not been suspended, despite this accident.

Likewise, Petroecuador’s operations in the Trans-Ecuadorian Oil Pipeline System (SOTE) and the Shushufindi Quito Polyduct are developing normally.

For its part, the Ministry of the Environment has urgently ordered the management of contingency, cleaning and remediation activities, due to the environmental impact in this area.

In addition, it notified OCP to present the respective emerging plan and the survey and monitoring of the affected environmental and social components.

Meanwhile, the Government reported that Table 1 of the Napo COE has been activated to guarantee the quality and quantity of water necessary for the population of the province, however, residents of the sector denounce that the crude oil is being irrigated along the roads of the zone.