Uk court holds mining giant bhp liable for catastrophic brazilian dam collapse that killed 19 and devastated ecosystems

A British High Court has ruled that Australian mining giant BHP bears responsibility for one of Brazil’s worst environmental disasters, opening the door for up to $47 billion in damages claims. The landmark decision comes nearly a decade after a catastrophic dam collapse that devastated communities and ecosystems across southeastern Brazil.

The disaster struck in November 2015 when a tailings dam operated by Samarco—a joint venture between BHP and Brazilian mining company Vale—collapsed near the small town of Bento Rodrigues in Minas Gerais state. The failure unleashed approximately 40 million cubic meters of toxic iron ore mining waste, creating a deadly mudflow that buried entire villages and claimed 19 lives. The contaminated sludge traveled hundreds of kilometers down the Rio Doce river system, poisoning thousands of streams and waterways before reaching the Atlantic Ocean.

The environmental impact was staggering: the toxic waste destroyed over 600 kilometers of rivers and streams, devastated local fisheries, contaminated drinking water supplies for hundreds of thousands of people, and caused irreparable damage to protected Atlantic Forest ecosystems. Indigenous communities and traditional fishing villages lost their livelihoods as the pollution spread through the river basin.

This UK court ruling represents a significant victory for affected communities, particularly since BHP was acquitted of criminal charges in Brazilian courts last year. The decision establishes international legal precedent for holding multinational corporations accountable for environmental disasters, even when operations occur in other countries. Claimants, representing thousands of affected individuals and communities, are now pursuing what could become one of the largest environmental damage settlements in history.