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Mining Destruction
Francisco Proner
Watch the meeting with Francisco Proner, moderated by Caroline Laurent-Simon https://cloud.imagesevidence.com/index.php/s/coMFo6eNCieYWyB
The cities of Mariana, Brumadinho and Maceió have been marked forever by environmental tragedies that changed the land and the lives of the Brazilian people. These tragedies are the results of a history of predatory mining in Latin America, and also evidence of crimes committed by multinationals in their ruthless management of the mining industry.
In Mariana, in the state of Minas Gerais, on November 5, 2015, the Fundão tailings dam burst, causing the worst environmental disaster ever in Brazil, releasing 43 million cubic meters of tailings into the nearby river. Nineteen people perished, the village of Bento Rodrigues was devastated, and the pollution spread along some 700 kilometers of watercourses. Fish and other forms of aquatic life were decimated. Local communities were exposed to health hazards, and had no access to clean drinking water. The damage to both the environment and human health is permanent. More than 700,000 people were affected, including farmers, Quilombolas (descendents of escaped slaves) and native communities in 46 municipalities.