The oil industry is not the only sector to suffer from constant blockades and protests. Mining projects, electrical lines and new highways have all suffered delays due to an increasing conflictive community relationship.
A new law signed by President Juan Manuel Santos will allow departments to apply royalty funds to bills for additional health care, and cover outstanding debts with service providers and insurers, an area where a number of departments are suffering financially.
Never a group to pass up a good opportunity for a strike, the USO said that it is “combative and present” in the ongoing truckers’ strike.
The Nasa Kiwnas Cxhab indigenous community in Putumayo accused Gran Tierra Energy (TSX:GTE) of desecrating a holy site and exposing its community to risk, and claims that the Ministry of the Interior has not recognized its presence in an area granted an environmental license. UPDATED with commentary by Gran Tierra.
The list of communities taking legal action, through popular referendums, POT zoning ordinances, court actions or other tactics, continues to grow. The latest to join the fray is the Morelia Municipality in Caquetá.
A year after a blockade and protest led to intervention from riot police and national attention, residents in Valparaiso, Caquetá have again opposed reactivated exploration activities. This depicts the challenge for the industry to reach areas with potential for oil production that have previously been off limits due to the armed conflict.
Another conflict brewing in Putumayo has come about after a community fully-rejected a seismic program in its territory during a prior consultation, but the license was granted, providing a test case on the limits of the process.
Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) has signed onto one of the largest efforts in Colombia to protect endangered wildlife species, in conjunction with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and others. This and other environmental stories in our periodic summary.
In Meta the Vice Minister of Labor Francisco Javier Mejía said that only 6000 jobs have been shed in recent months, less than what has been reported, while Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) says that its local hiring in the department is meeting its promises. These and other Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) stories in our periodic summary.
The reversion of the Rubiales field to Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) must result in a substantial improvement to the quality of life for communities in its vicinity, said Senator Maritza Martínez, who added that she will present a constitutional reform to return a greater share of royalties to producing regions.