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Waterfall or water trickle
Posted by BBC: Irene Caselli on March 15th, 2011
BBC: The image of the San Rafael waterfall is ubiquitous in Ecuador's Amazon region, appearing on everything from tourist brochures to the backs of buses, alongside the Virgin Mary meant to protect drivers.
The waterfall, the country's largest, is in the Sumaco Biosphere Reserve, a lush site protected by the United Nations for its unique flora and fauna, a result of the wet climate that originates from the meeting of the Andean and Amazon regions.
But environmentalists say this natural wonder and...
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Ecuador: Ecuador Amazon oil: Legal battle far from over
Posted by BBC: Irene Caselli on March 1st, 2011
BBC: Servio Curipoma moved to Ecuador's Amazon rainforest in 1981, when he was only 10 years old.
His parents, originally from southern Ecuador, decided to move to the Orellana region in the north-east of the country to seek their fortune.
It was the era of Ecuador's oil boom, and US company Texaco was a pioneer in oil extraction in the region.
But things didn't go as planned.
The Curipoma family settled by an oil well that was then being operated by Texaco - something common at the time,...