🍃 Victims of the Mariana dam disaster will be heard in a UK court
A new decision from the Court of Appeal in London states that the Anglo-Australian mining company BHP Billiton must answer in the English courts for its role in the 2015 disaster. The case is in England because the company has part of its capital in that country.
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More than 200 victims of Brazil's worst environmental disaster will have their case heard in a UK court, becoming the largest class action in English legal history (The Guardian*).
The collapse of the Fundão dam in Mariana released toxic mining waste into 640 miles of waterways along the Doce Rio. Claimants are seeking at least £5 billion in compensation.
In Brazil, BHP, together with Vale and Samarco, created the Renova Foundation, with the purpose of compensating individuals and some small businesses for losses and damages, as well as mitigating the environmental impacts of the disaster.
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🌿 Environmental devastation in the north of the country
Folha de S. Paulo reported that a business group, whichwho has a license that only allowed research to be carried out, would have extracted gold illegally, devastating an extensive area of forest in Northern Brazil (Folha de S. Paulo, for subscribers).
The Federal Police estimates the environmental impact caused by the actions of the suspected group at 300 million reais. This value takes into account deforestation, silting of water courses and mercury contamination.
🌳 New building in the Finnish capital is supported by trees
Pikku-Finland (or Little Finlandia) is a reusable wooden building, which includes entire trees with protruding branches as part of the structure, and is being temporarily used to host large events in Helsinki. Fully recyclable and transportable, it will be packaged and taken to a new location to be used as a school or daycare center in 2024 (BBC News).
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Video by Erika Benke/BBC News
(*) Translated by Google A translator.
Featured photo: Agência Brasil
Curto Verde is a daily summary of what you need to know about the environment, sustainability and other topics linked to our survival and that of the planet.
