We don't often hear about the oil that comes from South America because it tends to be overshadowed by headlines from the Middle East. Countries such as Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador are just a few of the nations that have become central to the world's perpetually expanding petrol market. However, their clout has not come without a price. Settled within a delicate landscape teeming with life, companies such as ChevronTexaco have caused an epidemic of health concerns and environmental damage in their search for black gold. The company alone has dumped the equivalent volume of about eight Exxon Valdezes of crude oil and associated wastes into unlined open-air pits and waters in El Oriente during excavation alone, and the extraction has swelled the effects even further - almost all men, women and children in the area are almost guaranteed to develop cancer or to become sterile. Privy to the situation since he was a child, activist and Founder of Gaia Certified David Poitz has dedicated his life to educating the public on the tragic situation that has been echoing across the Amazon for decades. Inhabitat writer Daniel Rejto shares his experience on one of David Poitz's "Toxi-Tours" as they navigate the manmade destruction of the Ecuador's Amazon rainforest due to the oil industry. Read on for Daniel's eye-opening essay, "Powerless in a Needy Land."
