Sao Paulo (AFP) – Brazil The federal government on Friday reached a multibillion-dollar settlement with mining companies responsible for a 2015 dam collapse that the government said was the country’s fault. The worst environmental disaster ever.
Under the agreement, Samarco – a joint venture between Brazilian mining giant Vale and Anglo-Australian company BHP – will pay 132 billion reais ($23 billion) over 20 years. The payments are intended to compensate for human, environmental and infrastructural damage caused by the release of a huge amount of toxic mining waste into a major river in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, killing 19 people and destroying entire villages.
“We are repairing a catastrophe that could have been avoided, but did not happen,” President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in a hall at the presidential palace, surrounded by governors of the affected states, members of his administration, journalists and victims.
Lula’s speech, which was filled with criticism for what he described as the irresponsibility of mining companies in pursuing profit at the expense of safety, was met with applause from the audience.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks at the signing ceremony of the agreement to compensate for damages resulting from the 2015 collapse of the Mariana Dam owned by the mining company Samarco, a joint venture between Vale and BHP, at the Planalto Presidential Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, Friday, October 25. 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Perez)
The toxic sludge – enough to fill 13,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools – flowed down the Duce River 420 miles into the Atlantic Ocean, polluting waterways and coastal areas in two neighboring states.
The mining companies informed the federal government during the negotiations that they had already paid 38 billion Brazilian reais ($6.7 billion) in compensation. In a statement on Friday, Samarco said the agreement allowed lawsuits related to the dam collapse to be resolved.
Rodrigo Villela, Samarco’s president, said in the statement that the collapse marked a turning point in their history, which they “deeply regret and will never forget.”
He added: “The agreement signed today reinforces the commitment of Samarco and its shareholders to people, communities and the environment, ensuring the continuation of full and final repair and compensation for damages.”
The settlement includes compensation for more than 300,000 victims, although this number does not include all those affected. Twice as many people – 620,000 – They took their case to a British court on Monday Seeking compensation.
The class action lawsuit filed in the High Court in London seeks damages estimated at 36 billion pounds ($47 billion) from BHP. The case was brought in Britain because one of BHP’s two main legal entities was based in London at the time.
Brazilian Mines and Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira watches BHP CEO Mike Henry sign a multibillion-dollar compensation agreement for damage caused by the 2015 collapse of the Mariana Dam owned by mining company Samarco, a joint venture between Vale and BHP. At the Planalto Presidential Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, Friday, October 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
The London lawsuit prompted the chief justice of Brazil’s Supreme Court, Luis Roberto Barroso, to personally seek Lula’s commitment to ensuring the parties reach an agreement domestically.
“I talked to Lola and said, ‘Mr. “Mr. President, there is a case abroad, and it would be very devastating for the Brazilian courts if this matter were resolved outside the country,” Barroso said on Friday at the presidential palace.
The Brazilian federal government said victims will receive 35,000 reais ($6,150) each, while fishermen and farmers will receive 95,000 reais ($17,000) in total in monthly installments over four years.
Cristiano Sales, 42, was born and raised in Pinto Rodrigues, one of the areas in the municipality of Mariana that was swept away by sludge nine years ago. When he returned to the ruins of his home three months later, the only thing he found was the shirt of his favorite soccer team, Cruzeiro.
Cristiano Sales stands in front of the ruins of his house that was swept away by sludge in the 2015 dam collapse owned by mining company Samarco, a joint venture between Brazilian mining operation Vale and Anglo-Australian company BHP, in Pinto Rodrigues, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, October 19, 2024. ( AP Photo/Eleonore Hughes)
Sales lives in a new house in a neighborhood built by mining companies as part of his father’s compensation. After filing a lawsuit, he personally received 100,000 Brazilian reals ($18,000) and is still seeking additional damages through the London lawsuit.
“Money can’t pay for what we went through here,” he said. “We take the money because it is our right. But to say that 100,000 or even 200,000 or 300,000 can bring back the life we had, I don’t think any amount of money can do that.”
BHP, based in Melbourne, Australia, said in a statement on October 19 that it believes the British action is unnecessary because it duplicates matters covered by reparations efforts and legal actions in Brazil, but that it will continue to defend itself.
The law firm representing the plaintiffs, Bogost Goodhead, said on Friday that the settlement in Brazil should have no impact on the London case, and that there would be no double compensation. The company added that its clients have been excluded from negotiations and are still seeking full compensation for unresolved damages.
The law firm said in a statement, “The Mariana Agreement signed on Friday in Brazil shows that after 9 years of neglect, the mining companies have finally decided to respond to the pressure of public opinion and the trial in England, which began last Monday.” statement. “However, the amounts specified are far from covering the devastating losses suffered by the victims, who continue to fight for justice and full reparations.”
Monica dos Santos, 39, wears a T-shirt with pictures of victims of a dam collapse in Pinto Rodrigues, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, October 19, 2024. Victims of Brazil’s worst environmental disaster, on November 5, 2015, took their case for compensation to a court in the United Kingdom. on Monday, October 21, 2024, nearly nine years after tons of toxic mining waste poured into a major waterway, killing 19 people and devastating communities. (AP Photo/Eleonore Hughes)
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Hughes reported from Pinto Rodriguez, Brazil.
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