ECOPETROL: UN To Verify Environmental Recovery In Oil Spill Area

(RTTNews) - The United Nations will monitor how the Colombian government intends to assure that Ecopetrol environmentally compensates the Lizama 158 well's crude oil spilling that began in March, said the Colombian Environment Minister, Luis Murillo.

The head of the UN Environment Office in Colombia, Juan Carlos Bello, said that the entity should help the government to understand the impact of the oil spill.

"The idea is to ensure that we have some of the best experts in the world to accompany the entities of the country," said Bello.

The Alexander Von Humboldt Research Institute will be in charge of planning the strategy for full restoration of the areas affected by the spilling.

The dumping of 550 barrels of oil began at the La Lizama 158 well and had caused a large oil slick, which initially spread through two streams, La Lizama and Ca?o Muerto, leaving behind thousands of dead animals, mostly fishes.