Brazil’s environmental regulator is planning additional fines against iron ore miner Samarco on top of the 20 billion reais in damages and clean-up charges the government is seeking, the country’s attorney general, Luis Adams, said on Friday.
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A report Monday in O Estado de S. Paulo daily said the mud had reached a sensitive nature reserve frequented by endangered turtles.
The flood of mud unleashed by the dam burst at the Samarco mine all but erased a nearby hamlet, with eight deaths directly attributed to the disaster, another four bodies yet to be identified and another 11 people still missing.
The dense orange sediment in the river reached the ocean on the weekend, hurting local tourist businesses.
The statement criticised Somarco and the Brazilian government for their “insufficient” response, alleging they are committing human rights abuses.
The statement contradicts claims by Samarco, the mine operator at the site of the rupture, and Samarco’s co-owner, BHP Billiton, that the water and mineral waste contained by the dam are not toxic.
Both BHP and Vale have said they will continue to support Somarco’s efforts and establish a 100-million-U.S. dollar relief fund to help communities affected by the deadly dam burst.
A combination photograph shows windows of damaged houses in Bento Rodrigues district after a dam, owned by Vale SA and BHP Billiton Ltd, burst in Mariana, Brazil, November 9, 2015.
Leonardo Castro Maia, a prosecutor in the city of Governador Valadares, which had its water supply cut off by the mud, told Reuters he had been pushing IGAM to publish its findings on its website.
“The tailings that entered the Rio Doce [river] were comprised of clay and silt material from the washing and processing of earth containing iron ore, which is naturally abundant in the region”.
Fifty million tons of waste, including “heavy metals and other toxic chemicals”, were released into the area, the experts said.
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A joint venture between Brazil-based Vale and Australia-based BHP Billiton, Samarco produces around 30 million tonnes of iron ore per year. All three companies have said the tailings are harmless and consist mostly of mud and sand. “We are very anxious that there are 5,200 people who don’t know what the future holds”, he said referring to the many jobs suspended in and around Samarco after the accident. The incident is adding to pressures on BHP and Vale, which are contending with a rout in commodities and sagging share prices.
