Our Soils Soiled with Oil

Independent Oil Prospecting

Photograph by Damir Sagolj, Reuters

A man cranks a hand-powered oil well outside Minhla, a town in central Myanmar (map). Across Myanmar, independent drillers work tens of thousands of so-called artisanal oil pits using primitive and dangerous methods that date back to the 1800s. The workers sell the crude oil to local refiners, often to supplement their farming income. A day's grueling labor for some nets around $30, although others report much higher profits.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is rich in natural resources, yet it produces a minimal amount of crude oil. Until recently, political sanctions on the regime that ruled the country for nearly 50 year kept out much foreign investment, hindering the modernization of the oil and gas industry. In 2012, many of those sanctions were lifted in response to political and economic reforms. International energy companies are now eyeing Myanmar, and several have secured exploration and drilling rights both on land and offshore in locations many expect could be rich in natural gas.

John Dale, an anthropologist at George Mason University who studies Myanmar, said this is "likely the 11th hour" for independent oil drillers. As foreign companies bring modern technology to Myanmar, Dale said he expects independent operators to be pushed off their claims. "It will be interesting to go back in six months and see if they are still there," Dale said.

—Joseph Eaton

Dangerous Drilling

Photograph by Damir Sagolj, Reuters

Using only basic tools, a man fills a bucket with oil from his well. To drill a well, workers first set up a tripod of bamboo poles or tree trunks 40 or 50 feet high with a pulley affixed at the top to lower a drilling tool into the earth, according to Arakan Oil Watch, a human rights and environmental NGO operating in Myanmar. Workers then spend hours pounding the tool into the earth to reach the oil before hauling it out with a hand crank.

Despite the hard work, independent drillers are descending on Myanmar's unregulated oil fields, where they often lease claims from local farmers. In some cases, drillers are operating illegally, according to the Burmese newsmagazine Irrawaddy, and competition over oil claims has led to violence, including knife fights between rival drillers.