BUENOS AIRES, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Greenpeace activists inArgentina blocked access on Tuesday to a waste site used bycompanies that extract oil and gas from the Vaca Muerta shaleformation, the organization said.
Greenpeace said there were illegal practices at the oilwaste site which harmed the environment and local population.
The site is run by Treater SA, a company that handles wastefrom exploration and extraction of shale oil and gas. The siteis used by Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Total SAand Argentina's state-controlled oil company YPF SA.
YPF, the company with the largest investment at Vaca Muerta,told Reuters that the activists' blockade did not impact itsactivity or facilities.
The Vaca Muerta shale formation in Patagonia is one of thelargest reserves of unconventional hydrocarbons on the planet,though much of its oil and gas remains untapped.
"We hope the oil companies will stop contaminating thePatagonian ecosystem with toxic waste and will close this dumpthat violates provincial and national laws," said Leonel Mingo,a member of Greenpeace's Climate and Energy program.
Greenpeace also said in the statement that Treater did nottake workers' safety into account at the site. Treater did notimmediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Eliana Raszewski; writing by Cassandra Garrison;Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
