Ecopetrol Reports Advances In Managing Tumaco Spill

Colombian petroleum producer Ecopetrol has announced today that it has made significant strides in containing the oil spill caused June 22 by the FARC terrorists in Tumaco, thanks in large part to multilateral support from Colombia’s armed forces and national police.

Barriers installed by emergency crews have protected various tributaries of the Mira river, and the company is able to move forward with cleanup and mitigation. During flyovers, the amount of crude oil in the ocean seems to be decreasing, but surveillance is being carried out to direct specialized equipment as needed.

87 specialists working with the local community and Ecopetrol contractors are on the ground cleaning the Tumaco aqueduct to restore water service to the surrounding area, and repair the damaged caused by FARC sabotage. Meanwhile, the company is working with authorities in Bahia Málaga, Colombia, as well as Esmereldas, Ecuador to provide potable water to the affected communities via water tanker trucks. So far, more than 200,000 gallons of drinkable water has been provisioned to Tumaco area residents.

“We are working arduously on this emergency and we want to recognize the important inter-institutional cooperation that we have received from the armed forces, national police, and the governments of Colombia and Ecuador to mitigate the environmental and social impacts that this crude spill has left as a result of the attack,” said Jaime Josué Sarmiento, Ecopetrol’s oil pipeline manager.