Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP may be held liable for the 2015 collapse of a dam in southeastern Brazil, London’s High Court has ruled, in a lawsuit that plaintiffs’ lawyers previously valued at $74 billion.
Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians, dozens of local governments and about 2,000 companies have sued BHP over the collapse of the Fundao dam in Mariana, southeastern Brazil, which was owned and operated by BHP and Vale’s Samarco joint venture.
Brazil’s worst environmental disaster caused a wave of toxic sludge that killed 19 people, left thousands homeless and flooded forests.
Enough mining waste to fill 13,000 Olympic swimming pools flowed into the Doce River.
Judge Finola O’Farrell said in her ruling that continuing to raise the dam when it was unsafe to do so was the “direct and proximate cause” of the dam’s collapse, meaning BHP was liable under Brazilian law.
Victims and relatives of victims of Brazil’s Mariana dam disaster protested outside London’s High Court during the trial. Source: Getty / Peter Nicholls
O’Farrell said Australia-based BHP was responsible, despite not owning the dam at the time.
She said in a 222-page ruling: “BHP’s control of Samarco, their acceptance of responsibility for the risk assessment, management and control of the tailings dam, and their full participation in the tailings dam operations, gave rise to a legal duty to prevent damage caused by an act or omission that was negligent, careless or lacking in skill.”
O’Farrell said BHP had been negligent or careless when it failed to carry out studies and remediations recommended by engineers, causing waste material to become saturated with water and when Samarco continued to raise the dam.
The ruling was only about liability. Compensation will be determined in a second phase of the trial.
The case was brought in Britain because one of BHP’s two main legal entities at the time was based in London.
BHP said it would appeal the ruling and continue to fight the lawsuit.
The trial began in October 2024, just days before Brazil’s federal government reached a multi-billion dollar settlement with the mining companies.
Under the deal, Samarco – which is also half-owned by Brazilian mining giant Vale – agreed to pay 132 billion reais ($35 billion) over 20 years.
The payments were intended to compensate for human, environmental and infrastructure damage.
BHP had said the legal action in the UK was not necessary because it was duplicating cases that were subject to legal proceedings in Brazil.
BHP spokesman Brandon Craig said in a statement that 240,000 claimants in the London lawsuit “have already received compensation in Brazil.”
#Mining #giant #BHP #held #liable #deadly #collapse #Brazilian #dam #British #court #ruled