Dear George,

In 2015 a dam managed by the mining company Samarco (a subsidiary of Vale S.A) burst in Brazil in the state of Minas Gerais, in the municipality of Mariana. The swath of mud big enough to fit 16,000 Olympic swimming pools kills 19 people and destroys entire communities.

A little more than three years later, a different dam managed by the mining company, Vale S.A., burst again the same state of Brazil, Minas Gerais, in the municipality of Brumadinho. But this time, the loss of human life is exponentially worse. The avalanche kills more than 250 people, burying “women, men, animals, and vegetation.”

George, as the two above examples clearly show, mining companies don’t police themselves. Both mining companies, Samarco (first mine mentioned) and Vale S.A. (second mine), “knew beforehand of the real risk of the dams breaking, but they took no steps to avert the tragedies.”

It is clear: the world needs “binding regulations governing (multinational) corporations, in order to prevent breaches of human rights and to ensure they do not escape with impunity.”

Watch and share the video that lays bare the destruction

Keep raising your voice,

Cliona Sharkey

Director of Advocacy and European Programmes

Global Catholic Climate Movement