Environment

Ecuador Wants Money Not to Drill for Oil

by Barbara McPherson | October 27, 2009 at 08:55 am

96 views | 12 Recommendations | 4 comments

Ecuador's president Rafail Correa is in Europe attempting to generate interest in a scheme to have countries pay for Ecuador not to drill for oil in an Amazon Reserve. This area has been declared a biosphere reserve by the United Nations.

Under the plan, rich countries would pay Ecuador at least half the revenues that the 850 million barrels of heavy crude oil estimated to be in Ecuador's remote Yasuni National Park would be expected to generate over the next 10 years - or about $4 billion.

Ecuador says not drilling for the oil would keep 410 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere, a figure that has caught the attention of green-conscious governments in Europe.

Spain has already donated some money to help set up the project. Germany has expressed interest, but is waiting for other countries to commit.
Ecuador is a member of OPEC and depends heavily on its oil revenues to maintain its budget. The oil under the Yasuni Reserve represents a sizable portion of its reserves.

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Roy C

at 09:30 on October 27th, 2009

Don't drill if you don't want to. If you want to, it can be done. You drill sideways or on postage sized lots. Not a dime to Ecuador for not drilling. Not necessary.

a211423

at 14:15 on October 27th, 2009

Ecuador is rich in many things besides oil, and protecting their environment as a rich resource is worth considering.

As one of the 17 countries with the highest biodiversity concentration in the planet, Ecuador has 24 natural areas protected by the State and scores of protection forests. Many parks are also cared for by private organizations, ecological groups and colleges. Wildlife reserves are the natural habitat of 1,640 species of birds, butterflies (4,500 species), reptiles (345), amphibians (358) and mammals (258 species). Travel agencies throughout the country organize tours through the most attractive settings. Most tourist firms are located in Quito (50.4%).

Globally as we move toward less dependency on oil, supporting countries in their choice to not drill is prudent and futuristic.

Roy C

at 17:28 on October 27th, 2009

Except we have no money. We are broke and that is that. Supporting them means no schools here or fewer teachers or a host of other things that need work that won't get done.

Foreign aid, except for the most dire, is over.