Mobil has discovered a natural gas reserve in a pristine, biologically rich tropical forest in Peru, and the company has until February to do more exploration and analysis and decide whether it will give up its claim on the area or hold it for future development. A tense national debate is brewing over whether the disputed land — the isolated Candamo Valley, home to jaguars, pumas, tapirs, anaconda, and numerous rare species — should be declared a national park or remain in private hands for oil or gas development. According to a recent poll, the majority of Peruvians would like Mobil to release its contract on the land so it could become a national park, but the Peruvian government is thought to be supportive of resource exploitation.
