Far from being rich on royalties beyond their wildest dreams their population has been decimated. What was once pristine rainforest is now an environmental disaster.

The quest for prodigious petro-profit has turned local waterways into massive toxic sludge. A mother presents her child to the camera. "All these pimples appear when they go to the river to have a bath...it gives her an allergy and fevers." Last year, a team of researchers from Harvard found toxic contaminants in the water at levels 1000 times greater than US safety standards. A link is suspected between the polluted water and calcium deficiencies in breast milk leading to deformation of children's developing bones.

The Minister for Energy and Mining speaks the truth - Latin America cannot sacrifice development in favour of ecology. The government is almost totally reliant on oil revenue just to pay interest on the national debt. It is not willing to jeopardise operations for environmental concerns. The local population just has to put-up with polluted land and an early grave. A horrifying report on environmental negligence and Amazonian oil exploration.

Produced by ABC Australia