Mariana tragedy in Brazil: UK lawsuit reaches 700,000 plaintiffs
The lawsuit filed against the Anglo-Australian mining company BHP Billiton in the United Kingdom has received 500,000 new plaintiffs. There are now 700,000 people and entities represented in the lawsuit over the collapse of the Fundão tailings dam in the state of Minas Gerais in 2015.
The environmental disaster released 39 million cubic meters of tailings in the city of Mariana, Brazil, left 19 dead, destroyed entire communities and impacted dozens of municipalities along the Rio Doce basin to its mouth in Espírito Santo. BHP controls, along with Vale, the mining company Samarco, responsible for operating the dam.
Among the new plaintiffs in the lawsuit are indigenous and quilombola communities, companies, 46 municipalities, states (Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro and Bahia), religious institutions and public service municipalities. The amount requested for compensation rose from US$6.03 billion to US$43.41 billion.
Proceedings
The lawsuit has been underway in England and Wales since 2018, with the plaintiff being represented by the law firm Pogust Goodhead. The lawsuit was suspended in 2020, when an English judge ruled that, even though BHP is headquartered in London, only the Brazilian courts should deal with the case.
In 2022, the Court of Appeal of England decided that there was jurisprudence in the country. From then on, a new deadline of February 2023 was opened for the inclusion of plaintiffs in the process. The trial of the lawsuit is scheduled for April 2024.
"Financial compensation will not return our customers to the healthier and more prosperous times of before, nor will it ever fully repair the damage to the environment. However, if BHP had paid the compensation fairly and within a reasonable timeframe, they would have at least done the right thing and lived up to the corporate values they hold so dear. Instead, as a result of continued attempts to frustrate justice, the mining company and its investors now face multiple financial liabilities higher than they should have and prolong the agony of the victims," says Tom Goodhead, executive director of the law firm.
Maykon Krenak, a member of the indigenous Krenak community, is one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit and says that to this day those living along the banks of the Rio Doce suffer from the results of the dam breach. "BHP came to my house, took my food, dirtied my water and tried to erase our identity. We want justice," she said.
Renova Foundation
Created to manage programs and actions to repair the damage caused by the 2015 disaster, the Renova Foundation reports that it has paid out up to January this year R$13.7 billion in compensation and emergency financial aid to more than 410,000 people.
BHP Billiton says in a statement that it fully refutes the claims of the lawsuit. "The lawsuit filed in England is unnecessary because it duplicates issues already covered by the ongoing work of Fundação Renova and/or the subject of ongoing lawsuits in Brazil. The lawsuit in the UK is still at a preliminary stage. Full details and amounts relating to the new claimants and their claims have not yet been made available to the English Court or to BHP."
The company also says it has asked for permission to appeal to the English Supreme Court against continuing the case in the country. But there has been no response yet. Meanwhile, it says it is working in collaboration with Samarco and Vale on reparation programs.
