November 2, 2018

…On September 15, 2018 indigenous federations from the Amazonian Loreto region of northern Peru scored a small victory in the fight for community rights. Representatives from four federations signed an agreement with the Peruvian government and the state-owned enterprise PetroPerú that acknowledges prior consultation as part of the new contracting process for petroleum Block 192. Under the new agreement, Block 192 will undergo a community consultation process before PetroPerú awards a new contract for operating the oil field…“The government has a quick timeframe to consult citizens and find a new strategic partner, but we are optimistic that the Peruvian government will honor its decision to defend prior consultation,” said Frank Boeren, the country director for Oxfam in Peru. “For too long, powerful industry interests have trampled on community rights in the Amazon. This recent decision is a small but needed victory along a tedious and uphill journey for these federations, which Oxfam has proudly accompanied since 2012.”...American-based Occidental Petroleum discovered oil in the region in 1972 and a succession of companies, including the Dutch-Argentinian conglomerate Pluspetrol, left Block 192 (previously Block 1-AB) heavily polluted. While Peru’s Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement fined Pluspetrol for violations, the Peruvian government remains in a protracted legal fight with the oil giant. A majority of the fines are outstanding and Pluspetrol denies any wrongdoing, despite settling with a local community in 2015.