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But that balance comes at an environmental cost as well. Operations at local refineries, which produce crude gasoline, kerosene and diesel fuel, see oil spilled everywhere, soaking the ground into a mix of mud and crude that can swallow a leg up to the knee. Large dug-in pits hold the crude until it passes through makeshift piping to create fuels sometimes so volatile they can explode at will. Massive fires that send plumes of smoke towering into the air fuel the process. "It is the only job we are doing," said an illegal refiner who gave his name as Ibeci. "There is no other job." Nigeria's military, which maintains a presence in the delta since the militant attacks, has begun targeting illegal refineries in the region. Local refiners like Ibeci say they now work only at night, as the smoke plumes draw soldiers to their operations during the day. The military claims to have dismantled dozens of such illegal refineries, though Associated Press journalists in the region in May came across multiple sites where the ground was still warm from refining the night before. Lt. Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, a military spokesman for the region, declined several interview requests regarding the military's efforts in the region. But as Nigeria's government focuses on illegal refineries, Cole said the vast majority of the thefts actually see the oil taken out of the country into eastern Europe, South America and Asia for sale. Cole's organization, which received initial seed money from Shell and later received support from the Dutch government, wants there to be stricter monitoring of oil entering international markets, as well as testing done to ensure that such stolen crude can't be slipped into the system. However, he acknowledges the true challenge facing the effort: Those supporting the thefts include Nigeria's military and the nation's political elite. "There must be some kind of collusion," Cole said. "The whole thing started really because of the political need to raise a lot of money during the elections. The whole idea of selling oil illegally was sponsored and maintained by our political leaders. There is no doubt about that." ___ Online: Stop the Theft: Nigerian Navy's website against oil theft:
http://www.stopthetheftng.com/
http://www.cot.navy.mil.ng
[Associated
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