GREENPEACE MEXICO DISCOVERS ABANDONED PLATFORMS ON THE COAST OF THE STATE OF TABASCO
Tabasco, MEXICO 31 March 1997
The Rainbow Warrior today discovered in front of the coast of the state of Tabasco four abandoned oil platforms of PEMEX, the Mexican government owned oil company; after 20 years of abandonment, these platforms continue to spill oil into the sea.
At the beginning of the working tour in the Gulf of Mexico called THE OIL TRAIL, the Rainbow Warrior arrived at 8 o'clock on the morning today in the oil field called Campo Arjona, Tabasco. In three zodiacs the activists arrived at one of the platforms and climbed up the structure 40 meters high.
As a silent witness of the abandonment of the platforms since 20 years ago, the activists of GREENPEACE found rusted barrels, scrap of metals, PVC, wood and wires. "The structure is falling down slowly due to the corrosion and there are intermitent oil spills" said the fisherman that were fishing near the platform.
At another platform, GREENPEACE picked up some samples of the oil that flows from the broken pipeline.
On a previous visit of GREENPEACE in Campo Arjona, made on last February, the organization inspected a nearby zone of approximately 25 acres, that was used as a center for storage and distribution of the oil extracted at the platforms and is almost covered now with oil.
These are the trails that PEMEX has left on its way. On the sea abandoned platforms since 20 years ago in spite of the existence since 1958 of international conventions where it was agreed that these installations would be removed. And on land hundreds of acres polluted by the oil industry wastes", declared firmly Alejandro Calvillo, Climate Change Campaigner of GREENPEACE Mexico. Calvillo added that "This problem represents a serious threat, because the major amount of oil extracted in Mexico comes from the continental shelf, and if this kind of wrong-doing activities continue, the Gulf of Mexico will be a desert sea with abandoned installations, which will pose risks for the navigation and will destroy the sustaining activities of the fishing communities".
Up to when will the Mexican environmental authorities allow this situation to go on? What has happened with the obligation of the government owned oil company to prevent, correct and restore the environmental impacts of its activities, as it is established by the law? It is obvious that PEMEX is more interested in spending millions of dollars in publicity for "green wash" than in investing in activities that could protect the environment and the local communities.
THE OIL TRAIL has began today, and will continue until April 7th, and the purpose of this tour is to bear witness of the environmental effects of the oil industry in the states of Tabasco and Campeche.
