In Ecuador, warnings go off when you least expect it. In an interview given by this newspaper with Alberto Andrade, director of the Insular Front Collective, about the air accident he experienced together with the pilot Julio César Vizuete on April 12 – from which, luckily and knowingly, they escaped unharmed – he reveals that the poor quality of the fuel in the Galapagos she caused an accident.

“In the Galapagos, we have a big problem of fuel contamination. Even speedboats experience this. The gasoline deposition procedure is being carried out. The pilot was not aware of this. It’s a state problem because there are no more subsidies (for jet fuel) and we don’t have optimal quality, and that could have cost us our lives,” he says.

The warning must be taken seriously. Indeed, a plane crash could have cost the lives of these two men who flew over in an ultralight aircraft to observe marine megafauna in the Galapagos Islands; but if the fuel quality on the islands is poor, the environmental impacts should also be addressed.

“We tied two lifelines to drag the body in case one of them died,” says Alberto Andrade, recounting how he and the pilot survived a plane crash in the Galapagos

In the event of an air hazard, the pilot asked if jet fuel used in the Galapagos was mixed with car fuel. On land, the burning of low-quality gasoline affects cars and, most seriously, the body of people, animals and even plant species, which may be imperceptible, but in the long run, it will be regrettable.

From October 26, 2022, 95 octane gasoline (super) is sold in Ecuador. Before, it was sent up to 92 octane. Petroecuador then confirmed that the best quality allows for a longer life of the car, as well as environmental protection with less emission of polluting gases.

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Andrade’s statement is a warning to authorities to pay attention to the quality of fuel sold in the Galapagos. For the benefit of settlers, tourists and the species of this natural heritage, it is better to exclude any risk or correct it, no matter how minimal. (OR)