CRUDE ACCOUNTABILITY

Geographic areas served: The Caspian region - Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan

Programs: 1. Crude Accountability is seeking relocation and compensation for the nearly 1300 villagers of Berezovka, Kazakhstan who are suffering from a host of chronic illnesses as a result of exposure to toxins from the nearby Karachaganak oil and gas field. The field is operated by Karachaganak Petroleum Operating B.V. (a consortium including Chevron, British Gas, ENI and Lukoil), and has received financing from the World Bank Group's private lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC). In other words, US tax payer money, intended to support the World Bank's mission to alleviate poverty, is financing this environmentally destructive project. 2. Crude Accountability is campaiging to stop the development of oil and gas transport terminals on the Taman Peninsula in southwestern Russia. As in the Karachaganak case, the Russkiy Mir Oil Terminal is financed by the IFC. The project is threatening local communities by destroying their most productive fishing grounds, polluting the air, water and soil and undermining the existing economy, which is based on fishing, tourism and agriculture. 3. Crude Accountability brings you the latest information about the environmental situation in Turkmenistan, a country that you'll increasingly see in the headlines as it has one of the world's largest undeveloped natural gas fields. Turkmenistan's South Yolotan Field alone contains an estimated 6 trillion cubic meters of gas (in comparison, the entire US had proven gas reserves of 5.98 trillion cubic meters by late 2007). Focusing on the impact of oil and gas development, we bring you information about the companies active in Turkmenistan and what this development may mean for the environment of the country, from its desert regions to the shores of the Caspian Sea.