High Court rules company liable for Brazil dam collapse - the country's worst environmental disaster

A justice has ruled that a institution tin beryllium held liable for a dam illness which devastated indigenous communities successful Brazil and became the country's worst biology catastrophe.

Judge Finola O'Farrell, sitting successful the High Court successful London, ruled connected Friday that BHP should not person continued to rise the tallness of the dam earlier its collapse, which was "a nonstop and contiguous cause" of the disaster.

BHP said instantly aft the ruling that it would entreaty the decision.

The lawsuit was brought successful British courts due to the fact that mining elephantine BHP was listed connected the London Stock Exchange astatine the clip of the collapse.

Brought by the planetary instrumentality steadfast Pogust Goodhead connected behalf of hundreds of thousands of victims, the assertion marks the archetypal clip immoderate of the mining companies down the dam person been held legally liable for the disaster.

The lawsuit has go the largest biology radical enactment successful English ineligible history, representing a important milestone for holding corporations accountable and advancing biology justice.

One of the largest civilian claims ever successful England

The Fundao Dam adjacent the metropolis of Mariana was operated by Samarco, a associated task betwixt BHP and Brazilian institution Vale.

It happened astir 10 years agone to the day, and is described arsenic the worst biology catastrophe successful Brazil's history.

It unleashed an avalanche of toxic discarded that dispersed 370 miles on the Doce River and retired to sea.

With 620,000 claimants, the lawsuit is 1 of the largest civilian claims ever lodged successful England and Wales.

Brazil is presently hosting the COP30 clime summit successful the Amazonian metropolis of Belem, aiming to presumption itself arsenic a clime person and champion of indigenous rights.

Shirley Djukurna Krenak, an indigenous person whose assemblage has lived for generations on the Doce River, said the acme is removed from the realities faced by indigenous peoples, and afloat of "greenwashing" and mendacious promises.

"If each the erstwhile COPs had worked, we wouldn't inactive beryllium talking astir crimes similar this," she said.

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In October 2024, Brazil's authorities and the states of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo signed a 132bn Brazilian existent (£20bn) compensation colony with Samarco, Vale and BHP, to money societal and biology repairs.

BHP has argued the tribunal lawsuit successful Britain duplicates different ineligible proceedings and reparations work.

How the Mariana dam catastrophe unfolded

On 5 November 2015, the Fundao tailings dam collapsed successful Minas Gerais, Brazil.

It released astir 40 cardinal tons of toxic sludge, including arsenic, which buried the tiny municipality of Bento Rodrigues and poured contamination into the Doce River.

The mud travelled truthful rapidly that residents did not person clip to escape, and it killed 19 people. Around 600 radical mislaid their homes.

The toxic discarded made its mode to the Atlantic Ocean, destroying h2o supplies, vehicles, habitats, livestock and livelihoods.

Ten years later, reconstruction and reparations person dragged connected done ineligible disputes, and the indigenous Krenak radical are inactive struggling to unrecorded on the Doce River that remains contaminated with dense metals.