Colombian farmers sue BP for $29M over alleged land degredation

Colombian farmers took on oil giant BP in the British High Court on Wednesday, in a lawsuit that alleges that the company negligently managed the construction of a pipeline in the mid-1990s, resulting in severe damage to their land.

The four-month trial marks the first time the U.K. firm has faced a domestic court over its actions overseas in what is being billed as one of the largest environmental case of its kind.

Around 100 "campesinos” – or peasant farmers — claim that construction activities by British company Equion Energia, formerly BP Exploration (Colombia) Limited, severely reduced the productivity of their land. They are seeking around $29 million in compensation, according to British news reports.

The lawsuit states that the Ocensa crude oil pipeline caused severe soil erosion, reduced vegetation coverage and areas for pasture, and blocked water sources, significantly reducing the productivity of farmland.

If successful, the case could pave the way for similar claims by other communities in developing countries who say they have been harmed by oil pipelines.

Shubhaa Srinivasan, a lawyer for the Colombian farmers, told the Guardian: "We feel it is really important that big companies are held to account for the way in which they undertake their activities abroad — especially when those activities take place in remote corners of faraway places, out of the public gaze.”

The BP subsidiary laid the Ocensa pipeline in partnership with four other multinational corporations and Colombia’s national oil company. Before the pipeline’s construction, BP entered into contracts with the farmers to lay the channel through their private land.

Lawyers for the farmers say that they did not fully understand the contracts nor did they receive fair compensation for environmental damage under the agreements, the Guardian reported.

Rogelio Velez Montoya, one of the plaintiff farmers, told the newspaper: “Our water supply has been damaged by sedimentation since the pipeline was laid, and I have lost cattle."

“I can no longer keep pigs or chickens because there is not enough water for them,” he added. “The reason why we have traveled so far is because we have hope and faith that the high court in London will deliver justice to us.”

A statement issued by BP said the pipeline project was executed in collaboration with the farmers, who were adequately compensated.

"The Ocensa pipeline project involved significant steps being taken at the time of construction to engage with local communities, make appropriate compensation payments and ensure that the land that the pipeline traversed suffered no material damage,” the statement said.

In 2011, BP sold all of its assets in Colombia which led to the creation of a new brand, Equion Energy Limited, according to Equion's website. 

Al Jazeera and Reuters