Scientists Concerned for Yasuní Urge Ecuador Not to Drill in Most Diverse Rainforest on Earth

Sept. 23, 2013 - PRLog -- The “Scientists Concerned for Yasuní” – a group of more than 100 scientists from Ecuador and around the world (Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States) with experience in Yasuní National Park – submitted a statement to the Ecuadorian Congress detailing the extraordinary biodiversity of the park and strongly warning against allowing new oil drilling in its core.

The Ecuadorian Congress is currently debating President Rafael Correa’s proposal to open up the remote northeast section of Yasuní National Park, areas known as oil blocks 31 and ITT, to a potentially massive new oil drilling operation. Since the area is within a national park, Congress must declare the projects to be in the national interest. President Correa’s new aggressive push for oil drilling comes on the heels of his announcing the failure of a 6-year initiative seeking international financial compensation in exchange for leaving the oil permanently underground.

“The scientists’ statement details and reaffirms that Yasuní National Park may very well be the most biodiverse place in the world,” said Shawn McCracken of Texas State University. “It is a remarkable convergence of global peak diversity levels of amphibian, bird, insect, mammal, and tree species.” This extraordinary diversity is likely due to the park’s unique and strategic location at the intersection of the Amazon, the Andes, and the Equator.

“The diversity of Yasuní National Park really is quite stunning when you realize the extreme richness spans across all biological groups,” said Anthony Di Fiore of the University of Texas at Austin, who has worked in the Yasuní region for almost 2 decades. “From monkeys to birds to frogs to woody plants, Yasuní is among the world record holders in almost every category.”

“It’s a travesty that the world community can’t come together to save this planetary treasure of biodiversity from permanent destruction for a miniscule amount of oil – about 45 days of U.S. consumption,” said Catherine Woodward of the Ceiba Foundation. “The problem is road construction. If they could extract the oil without building new roads, that would really reduce the impact.”

The Scientists Concerned for Yasuní, first formed in 2004 to establish the scientific basis against oil drilling plans in Block 31, indicate that it is unfortunate that they must fight this battle again. “The campaign is much more dire this time because the government drilling plans are much more aggressive and extensive than in years past,” said Matt Finer of the Center for International Environmental Law. “They are not nibbling around the edges of the park anymore, but going deep into the core of one of the most important protected areas in the world.”

By targeting the core of the park, the drilling projects also threaten some of the world’s last remaining indigenous people living in voluntary isolation.

Contact:

Matt Finer

Scientists Concerned for Yasuní

matt.finer@gmail.com