In 1999, when Enron and partner Shell were seeking loan guarantees from the U.S. government’s Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) for their Cuiabá natural gas pipeline here, they answered environmental opposition with conservation pledges. First, the companies offered $1.5 million. Then they upped the amount to $15 million. As a vote by OPIC drew near, they reached an agreement with five green groups to donate $20 million and create the Chiquitano Forest Conservation Foundation (FCBC). The environmental NGOs promised they would try to raise an additional $10 million. The loan guarantees were approved. Intended as a compromise, the foundation instead has sparked debate that has become as intense as the continuing controversy over the pipeline. It has underscored how issues of representation and local control... [Log in to read more]