Vale Signs Agreement With The Public Ministry of Minas Gerais (MPMG) to Use International Standards for Dams and Ensure Greater Safety in State Mining

After Disasters Occurred with Structures of the Type in Minas Gerais, Vale Signed an Agreement with the MPMG to Adopt International Safety Standards for Dams and Plans to Invest in Guaranteeing Good Mining Conditions in the Region.

During last Monday, (08/08), the company Vale and the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Minas Gerais (MPMG) signed a commitment agreement for the mining company to adopt international standards for dams in its structures, aiming to ensure more safety in mining and avoid disasters. Additionally, the company will invest in new inspections and infrastructure for the dams as well as in social projects aimed at the state of Minas Gerais.

MPMG Signs Commitment Agreement with Vale for the Adoption of International Safety Standards for Dams in the Mining Sector in the Region 

The mining sector has become nationally known as one of the most impactful to nature and also to human beings, especially after the accidents in Mariana and Brumadinho in recent years.

And, aiming to prevent new accidents from occurring and to contribute to a safer and more sustainable mining practice, the mining company Vale has just signed a Commitment Agreement with the MPMG to adopt international standards for dams in its structures in the state. 

The company will also be responsible for providing the government with a database containing safety information about the structures and will collaborate with social and environmental projects in the state of Minas Gerais.

Thus, the coordinator of the Operational Support Center for Environmental Defense (Caoma), Carlos Eduardo Ferreira Pinto, celebrated the signing of the agreement and stated that the agreement reached between both parties aimed at the best decision for the state and for the mining company, which will now contribute to keeping mining in Minas safe. 

“We managed to build a consensual solution for this case. We found a conciliatory path, in a difficult and lengthy case. These obligations assumed today by Vale represent a significant step in the control of dam structures, which will be safer, as the mining company will follow global safety standards,” said the executive, while the Attorney General, Jarbas Soares Júnior, added: “The Public Prosecutor’s Office understands that the mining company is seeking a new type of expertise to solve old problems. It’s an evolution! We must face problems with wisdom, detachment, and courage.”

Agreement Between the Mining Company and the MPMG Also Provides for Investments in Socio-Environmental Projects and Oversight of Dam Safety Standards 

To ensure the necessary safety in its mining operations in the state of Minas Gerais, the mining company Vale will adopt the best and most rigorous international practices for the management of tailings disposal structures, according to the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM).

But this will not be the only measure outlined in the Commitment Agreement with the state, as the company will also apply financial resources to socio-environmental projects in the region. 

Thus, Vale will invest R$ 40 million in dam safety and will allocate R$ 5 million in resources for the MPMG project “Meio Ambiente Acolhe — Caring is Our Nature,” which aims to mitigate the impacts of climate change on homeless individuals.

The agreement to ensure greater safety for Vale’s dams was signed, on behalf of the MPMG, by Attorney General Jarbas Soares Júnior; by Caoma coordinator Carlos Eduardo Ferreira Pinto; and by prosecutors Flávio Alexandre Correa Maciel, Felipe Faria de Oliveira, and Lucas Marques Trindade.

On the other hand, the director of Dam Decharacterization and Geotechnical Projects, Carlos Eduardo Bechara Miana, the executive manager of Brumadinho Renova, Humberto Moraes Pinheiro, and lawyer Alice Borges de Almeida signed as representatives of the mining company.