Abstract
Bento Rodrigues was a community with a deep sense of belonging. On November 5, 2015, its people had to watch their houses, stories, and ways of life destroyed in a matter of minutes after the fatal rupture of the Samarco/Vale/BHP tailings dam. Almost a year later, September 24, 2016, people said a last good-bye to the place during the feast of Our Lady of Mercy among its ruins. Bento Rodrigues would be covered by water after the construction of the S4 dike, to block the tailings still coming down from the Fundão dam.
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Notes
- 1.
Revista Exame. 40 largest brazilian export companies in 2014. By Tatiana Vaz, published Jan 27, 2015; updated Sept 13, 2016. Available at http://exame.abril.com.br/negocios/as-40-maiores-exportadoras-brasileiras-de-2014/
- 2.
FIRMINO, H.; MORAIS, L. A mineração de valores. Revista Ecológico, Belo Horizonte, v. 71, July 2014
- 3.
“There was negligence,” says MP on dam disruption in Mariana . Document states that there was a risk of dam rupture. G1 web Portal, published in 10/11/2015. Available at http://g1.globo.com/minas-gerais/noticia/2015/11/houve-negligencia-diz-mp-sobre-rompimento-de-barragens-em-mg.html. Accessed on 12 December 2016
- 4.
INSTITUTO PRÍSTINO. Technical Report Parecer Único N° 257/2013 Description of the event: Technical Analysis Concerning the Revalidation of the Operational License of the Fundão tailings dam – SAMARCO MINERAÇÃO S/A. Available at http://giaia.eco.br/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Resposta-parecer-257-2013.pdf. Accessed on 4 February 2017
- 5.
PARREIRAS, Mateus. FEAM admits discrepancy between actual volume of dam in Mariana and official data. The organization confirms that the register on the volume of tailings in the Samarco dams in Mariana has lapsed since 2012. The State of Minas Gerais revealed that the Fundão dam, which broke, had 20 times the volume recorded. Journal Estado de Minas, published in 2/12/2015. Available at http://www.em.com.br/app/noticia/gerais/2015/12/02/interna_gerais,713362/feam-admite-discrepancia-entre-real-volume-de-barragem-em-mariana-e-da.shtml. Accessed 2 February, 2017
- 6.
RODRIGUES, Léo. TCU shows problems of DNPM that contributed for the tragedy in Mariana. Agência Brasil. Available at http://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/geral/noticia/2016-09/tcu-aponta-falhas-do-dnpm-que-contribuiram-para-tragedia-em-mariana. Accessed on 2 February, 2017
- 7.
Pedro Ângelo. “Polícia Federal abre inquérito para apurar crime ambiental em Mariana. MPF pediu que Samarco, FEAM, OPAM e DNPM sejam investigados”. G1 web Portal, published in 17/11/2015. Available at http://g1.globo.com/minas-gerais/noticia/2015/11/policia-federal-abre-inquerito-para-apurar-crime-ambiental-em-mariana.html
- 8.
Jorge Munhós de Souza, Procurador da República do Ministério Público Federal aponta falha de fiscalização e co-responsabilidade. See “MPF cobra R$ 155 bi para reparar danos do rompimento da barragem da Samarco”. EBC – Agência Brasil web Portal, published in 03/05/2016. Available at https://www.escavador.com/sobre/3516567/jorge-munhos-de-souza
- 9.
Reportagem de Ricardo Senra para a BBC Brasil, published on 4/11/2016. Available at http://www.bbc.com/portuguese/brasil-37829548
- 10.
Portal de Notícias G1/MG, published on 14/11/2015. Available at http://g1.globo.com/minas-gerais/noticia/2015/11/indios-bloqueiam-saida-de-trem-da-vale-em-estacao-de-belo-horizonte.html. Accessed on 27 January 2017.
- 11.
Reportagem da BBC Brasil. “Não podemos pescar, não podemos tomar banho, o rio morreu para nós.” 16 November 2015. Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfk3yiAwl-Q
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported by undergraduate students from Univale, Iesmy Elisa Gomes Mifarreg (Law) and Natália Moreira Ferreira (Civil Engineering), from the scientific initiation program. We are grateful for the close reading and extensive editing of Irene J. Klaver and Brian C. O’Connor.
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Espindola, H.S., Guerra, C.B. (2018). The Ongoing Danger of Large-Scale Mining on the Rio Doce: An Account of Brazil’s Largest Biocultural Disaster. In: Rozzi, R., et al. From Biocultural Homogenization to Biocultural Conservation. Ecology and Ethics, vol 3. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99513-7_6
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