environmental liability News

Mexico Prepared to Sue U.S. Mining Firm Vulcan Over ‘Ecological Catastrophe’: President

Mexico will go to local and international courts if there is no agreement with U.S. firm Vulcan Materials over its mining activity in the eastern state of Quintana Roo, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Wednesday. The Mexican government …

Chilean State Sues Mining Companies, Alleging Environmental Damage

Chile is suing mines operated by BHP, Antofagasta and Albemarle over alleged environmental damage caused by their operations in the northern Salar de Atacama salt flats, a court said late on Thursday. The State Defense Council (CDE) launched its legal …

Oil Spill Caused by Massive Waves From Tonga Is ‘Ecological Disaster’ for Peru

An oil spill at a refinery in Peru during high waves caused by the explosion last weekend of a volcano in Tonga is an “ecological disaster,” the Peruvian government said on Wednesday. The foreign ministry said that the oil spill …

Environment Groups, Waste Management Firm Settle Lawsuit Over New Hampshire Landfill

Two environmental groups have settled a federal lawsuit with a waste management company over allegations the company’s landfill in New Hampshire leaked toxic chemicals into a nearby river. Under the settlement reached this week, Casella Waste Systems and its subsidiary, …

California Labor Shortage Compounding Complex Agriculture Landscape for Insurance Pros

The labor shortage in California has hit the agriculture industry particularly hard, creating a tougher environment all around – including for insurance professionals who deal in that sector. The lack of labor in the Golden State’s agriculture industry further compounds …

Lawsuit Against BHP over Brazil Dam Collapse Fails on Appeal in English Court

LONDON – A 200,000-strong Brazilian claimant group said on Wednesday it had failed to resurrect a 5.0 billion pound ($6.9 billion) English lawsuit against Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP over a devastating 2015 dam failure. The Court of Appeal agreed with …

Upstream Mine Tailings Dams Pose Higher Risks of Instability: Study

The most widespread type of dam used to store mine waste is nearly twice as unstable as the average tailings facility, a global study showed on Friday, highlighting the risk of so-called “upstream” construction techniques that some countries have banned. …

Brazilians Bring Lawsuit Against Norsk Hydro over Alleged Pollution

Some 40,000 Brazilians are bringing a group-action lawsuit in the Netherlands against Norwegian aluminum producer Norsk Hydro over alleged toxic waste pollution in northern Brazil. The lawsuit has been brought by a group of communities who live in the lower …

Russian Mining Giant Nornickel Fined $2 Billion for Huge Arctic Fuel Spill

MOSCOW – Russian mining giant Norilsk Nickel was fined $2 billion on Friday for the damage caused by a huge fuel spill last year in the country’s worst environmental disaster in the Arctic. The leakage in May of 21,000 tonnes …

Vale Agrees to Pay Settlement of $7 Billion for Brazilian Mine Disaster in 2019

Vale SA reached a settlement agreement with Brazilian authorities for a dam collapse that killed 270 people and led to production cutbacks that stripped the company of the title of world’s biggest iron ore producer. The deal comes two years …