‘Like dropping a bomb’: why is clean energy leader Uruguay ramping up the search for oil?

Uruguay’s push for ‘black gold’ has alarmed fishers and environmentalists who say it contradicts the country’s green credentials. Illustration: X/The Guardian

When he hears the news, the only words that fisher Francisco Méndez can use are those of war. “What they are planning to do is like dropping a bomb – and when you drop the bomb, everything dies,” says the 41-year-old father of five.

For 22 years, Méndez has sailed into the Atlantic Ocean, fishing for brotula and striped weakfish alongside his father, brothers and uncles. He is also joined, occasionally, by dolphins and whales, curious about his white and orange vessel. But now Méndez fears his family’s way of life and livelihood are under threat.