On November 5, 2015, the Fundão tailings dam in the southeastern city of Mariana collapsed, killing 19 people and burying entire villages under toxic sludge. The iron ore waste traveled 663 kilometers to the Atlantic Ocean, polluting the Rio Doce on the way, which runs through 230 municipalities that depend on it for subsistence. It was the biggest environmental tragedy in Brazil’s history.
According to environmentalists, the effects of the tailings swept out to sea will be felt for at least 100 years. The mining site was operated by Samarco — a joint venture between Brazilian giant Vale and BHP, companies which have yet to be fully held to account for the damage caused.
A little over three years later, a new tragedy struck: another tailings dam collapsed, this time in the municipality of Brumadinho. The mud reached the Paraopeba River, contaminating the water supply of the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte, where more than 6 million people live. At least 270 people died with further bodies still unaccounted for.
Months after the Brumadinho collapse, the National Mining Agency released a list of dams that lacked proper stability accreditation by qualified inspectors and were therefore banned from operating. The list contained 45 dams, of which 42 are in the state of Minas Gerais. Others are in the states of Amapá, Pará and Rio Grande do Sul.
The agency, however, stated that the Brumadinho dam had no pending documentation at the time and was considered inactive. And yet, 12 million cubic meters of mud were unleashed on neighbouring villages, infrastructure, and the river itself. Security alarms that were supposed to alert workers and nearby residents were not sounded.
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