OIL SPILL IN LA LIZAMA STREAM (COLOMBIA)

49% of Colombia's exports are represented by its Mineral Goods, of which the main one is oil.

The most significant environmental disaster in Colombia occurred in March 2018. 24,000 barrels of oil were spilled, affecting 16 communities in the department of Santander. There were 28 days with oil sprouting from the ground that was first drops and then became a huge jet that came out non-stop from a kind of crater. The contamination affected La Lizama stream and Sogamoso river, a tributary of Magdalena, the most important river in Colombia.

The oil slick that arose from said accident travelled almost 30 kilometres, at least 6,600 animals were cared for, of which 2,442 (cattle, fish, birds and reptiles) died, more than 5,000 trees of 1,000 species in the area were damaged; families had to be relocated; and people had to be treated for vomiting, headaches, and dizziness from the spill. From the economic point of view, fishing was seriously affected, reducing the families' income that depended on this trade.

The spill was generated by Ecopetrol, the largest oil company in the country. In the midst of the contingency, Ecopetrol designed an emergency plan that considered implementing 14 control points, 56 barriers and 5 dikes to stop the disaster. More than 200 people also joined the remediation tasks of the local emergency committees. However, environmental groups denounced that the speed of response was too slow, hence the disaster's seriousness.

The photographs show evidence of an environmental disaster: thousands of dead fish, hundreds of affected animals and traces of oil that are obvious on the beaches and fishing areas.