Texaco Suits on Pollution Reinstated

Texaco Inc. must face lawsuits alleging that it polluted parts of the Amazon rain forest and damaged the health of Ecuadorean and Peruvian Indians, a federal appeals court ruled. The U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York reinstated the suits against the White Plains, N.Y.-based oil company centering on allegations that it dumped toxic petroleum byproducts in the rain forest region during 28 years of oil exploration. The Indians are seeking more than $1 billion in damages and are demanding that Texaco clean up the area. The appeals court said a lower-court judge in Manhattan erred in ruling that the Ecuadorean Indians could not sue in U.S. courts. The previous government of Ecuador had opposed the Indians’ U.S. case when it was filed in 1993. The subsequent government supported the Indians in their U.S. case. Texaco shares fell 13 cents to close at $62.25 on the NYSE.