Brumadinho: What do we know about the tragedy of the dam?



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  The research work has no date to finish and is coordinated by the fire department of Minas Gerais. Photo: Bombeiros-MG / Twitter / Reproduction

The research work has no end date and is coordinated by the fire department of Minas Gerais. The search for victims of the Brumadinho tragedy (MG) entered today (3) on the tenth day. The causes of the dam failure of the valley that incorporates the bean mine are under study. Similarly, the extent of environmental and socio-economic damage is still unknown, although initiatives are already underway to identify the damage and some preliminary data have already been published.

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Death

According to the last Defense of Minas Gerais, 121 people died and 226 are missing. Most are Vale employees. The tailings buried a refectory and an administrative area of ​​the mining company. The research work has no date to finish and is coordinated by the fire department of Minas Gerais, but the chances of finding survivors are decreasing every day. The Federal Government Receives Help from Israeli Troops

Part of the Vila Ferteco community has been devastated. We do not know yet how many families lived in the community. Property located in the riparian areas of the banks of the Paraopeba River, where tailings were directed, has also been located. The latest figures show 116 homeless in the tragedy. Many of them have been housed in hostels and hotels in nearby places, such as Casa Branca, a rural town in Brumadinho, known for its waterfalls and ecological attractions.

Located in the metropolitan area of ​​Belo Horizonte, Brumadinho has about 36,000 inhabitants and is only 60 kilometers from the capital Minas Gerais. The Inhotim Institute houses a large collection of contemporary art in Brazil and is considered the largest outdoor art center in Latin America. As a precaution and safety measure, on the day of the break, the visitors were taken to the site. The institute has closed its doors in recent days and announced its resumption of operations on Friday (1), but suspended its reopening.

Brumadinho comes back to life after just over three years of major tragedy in Minas Gerais. In November 2015, a Samarco dam erupted in Mariana (MG), discharging 39 million cubic meters of residues into the environment. In the episode, 19 people died, communities were destroyed, forests devastated, fishing was impossible in most of the Rio Doce and Vale was legally held responsible because with BHP, Anglo-Australian, Billl is a shareholder of Samarco.

19659010] The Minas Gerais Civil Police and the Federal Police investigate the causes of the Brumadinho Dam rupture. A working group has also been established by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF). Last Tuesday (29), three Vale employees involved in dam licensing and two outsourced engineers testifying to the stability of the structure.

Last Tuesday (29), three Vale employees who participated in the licensing of the dam and two subcontracted engineers who testified to the stability of the structure were arrested. Federal Judge Perla Saliba Brito said the measure was "essential" to investigations.

The dam was built in 1976 by Ferteco Mineração, a company acquired by Vale in 2001. According to the mining company, since 2015, the structure no longer received residues, it was being processed. decommissioning (closure of activities). It is already known that a prize awarded by the German company Tüv Süd last September testified to the stability of the dam.

Environmental licenses were up-to-date, according to the Minas Gerais Secretariat for Environment and Sustainable Development (Semad). The body announced that last December, the National Council for Environmental Policy (Copam) had authorized the decommissioning of the dam by 10 votes, one abstention and one vote against. The Copam is a collegiate body composed of representatives of the public authorities, the productive sector and civil society

According to Semad, Copam has followed the rites and procedures in force. The National Mine Agency (ANM), which is responsible for monitoring the sector, said that Vale's statements in its Integrated Mine Dam Safety Management System (DMISM) did not indicate that clues to problems related to

Impacts on the environment

Neither the mining company nor the environmental agencies have so far published volume estimates of sludge that flowed into the Paraopeba River, the dam had an approximate capacity of 12 million cubic meters, and there was no information if it worked at the limit. the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), 133.27 hectares of native vegetation of the Atlantic Forest and 70.65 hectares of permanent protection zones along the courses. water was devastated [19659011] The Geological Survey of Brazil (CPRM), attached to the Ministry of Mines and Energy, monitors the evolution of turbidity of water in the river. The latest bulletins have revealed a slow displacement of the feather formed by the mixture of tailings and water. The tailings have already traveled more than 98 kilometers from the dam. The arrival of the plume at the dam where the Três Marias hydropower plant (MG) is located is rejected. It is in this dam that the Paraopeba River meets the São Francisco River

The Paraopeba River is used to serve the metropolitan area of ​​Belo Horizonte, but the water catchment in its bed was suspended by the Minas Gerais sanitation company (Copasa) after the tragedy. According to the public mining company, the supplies were not affected. The reservoirs of the Manso River, Serra Azul, Várzea das Flores and the Rio das Velhas catchment area would be sufficient to serve the population.

The Department of Health of the State of Minas Gerais (SES). MG) asked the technicians to take 44 water samples from the affected area to identify possible risks of intoxication. Preliminary results show the risks to human and animal health. The record warns that raw water from the Paraopeba River should not be used for any purpose. It also encourages people not to fish or consume fish and to stay at a distance of 100 meters from the banks of the river. On Thursday (31), the MPMG recommended to the government of Minas Gerais to determine the ban on fishing in Paraopeba.

Penalties

The government of Minas Gerais fined Vale 99 million. by Ibama. The court has ordered the blocking of R $ 11 billion in the accounts of the mining company, to ensure the repair of damages. The Minas Gerais Ministry of Labor (MPT-MG) has also managed to block an additional R $ 800 million to stop the payment of workers' compensation. In total, Vale is unable to manage UK $ 11.8 billion

In the United States, a clbad action has been filed on behalf of the company's shareholders. All those who bought shares of the Brazilian miner from April 13, 2018 to January 28 of this year can join the action. After the tragedy, Vale shares fell by 24.52%, but in the latter began to rise slowly. The company announced that the board of directors had suspended the payment of dividends and interest to shareholders.

Measures

One day after the tragedy, the government of Minas Gerais ordered the suspension of all Vale's activities in the area of ​​the broken dam. The federal government announced Tuesday (29) an investigation into the conditions of 3,386 dams clbadified as "potentially badociated high harm" or "high risk". The mining court banned the granting or renewal of environmental permits for new tailings dams using the upstream method, the same method used in Brumadinho and Mariana. Vale also said that it would close ten of these structures.

Beneficiaries of Bolsa Familia were allowed to make early withdrawals and workers could withdraw up to R $ 6,220 from the FGTS. Caixa and Banco do Brasil have created accounts to receive cash donations.

Vale, in turn, announced an emergency donation of R $ 100,000 for all families who lost family members, R $ 50,000 for those who owned real estate. affected area and R $ 15,000 for local trade workers. The amounts are cumulative, so that the same person can receive R $ 165,000 if this is appropriate in all situations. Vale also paid for funeral badistance and badistance for the relatives of the victims.

The municipality of Brumadinho has obtained the transfer of 80 million rand to compensate for the loss of recovery with the company's activities. According to Vale, the donations are not related to any damage.

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