environmental damage News

PolyMet Secures $544M in Surety Bonds, Funding for Wisconsin Mine Costs

PolyMet Mining Corp. is offering the state a $544 million package of financial assurances to serve as an insurance policy to protect taxpayers from potentially having to cover the costs of closing and cleaning up a controversial copper-nickel mine it …

North Carolina Company Faces Fine Over Red Dye Contamination in Creek

A company could be fined by North Carolina regulators after a rupture at a Winston-Salem plant dumped red dye into a creek, killing some fish and prompting a warning for people to avoid the water. The spill occurred at Hanes …

Brazil Charges 21 with Homicide for Failing to Avert Samarco Mine Disaster

Brazilian prosecutors charged 21 people with qualified homicide on Thursday for their roles in the collapse of a tailings dam at the Samarco Mineração SA iron ore mine last November that killed 19 people. The charges follow what is now …

Demand for Environmental Impairment Liability Cover Rises in Europe: Marsh

There has been a marked increase in the number of companies purchasing environmental impairment liability (EIL) cover across Europe in recent years, mainly due to an increase in regulation and buyer awareness, according to a report published by Marsh. From …

Brazil’s Prosecutor Expected to Seek Criminal Charges over Samarco Mine Disaster

Brazilian prosecutors are finalizing a criminal investigation into the Samarco mine disaster and expect to ask a judge by the end of September to charge employees, one of the prosecutors heading the case said. The investigation is looking into alleged …

Brazil Mine Disaster Caused by Poor Drainage & Design of Tailings Dam: Report

The deadly collapse of a tailings dam last November at the Samarco mine, owned by Vale SA and BHP Billiton, was caused by drainage and design flaws, a report into Brazil’s worst-ever environmental disaster showed on Monday. The 76-page report …

BHP to Fight $6B Civil Claim over Brazil Mining Disaster

BHP Billiton on Friday said it would appeal against the decision by a Brazilian court to reinstate a $6 billion public civil claim over last year’s Samarco iron ore mine disaster. BHP and 50-50 joint-venture partner Vale had agreed on …

Samarco, BHP & Vale Agree to Pay $5B in Damages for Brazil Mining Disaster

Mining company Samarco and its owners, BHP Billiton and Vale SA , reached a deal with the Brazilian government on Wednesday to pay an estimated 20 billion reais ($5.1 billion) in damages over 15 years for a deadly dam spill …

Brazil & Samarco Close to Agreeing on Damages from Mining Disaster

Brazil’s government and Samarco Mineracao SA are meeting on Friday to finalize the settlement of a lawsuit for damages caused by a deadly dam spill at a mine in November, with the attorney general’s office saying the accord was 95 …

Brazil Police Accuse Vale, Samarco of Environmental Crime for Mine Disaster

Brazil’s Federal Police accused Vale SA and its Brazilian joint venture with BHP Billiton Ltd of environmental crime related to a November dam collapse that destroyed a city in the country’s southeast and sent waves of toxic mud downstream into …